SCARS Commentary How Much Longer Are We Going To Tolerate Incompetence And Neglect?

Local governments are allowed to get away with almost anything when it comes to our data!
Some of their functions are covered under HIPAA and a few other regs, but most are as incompetently managed as the rest of local government functions.

A recent post by a processional cybersecurity professional said:

Just when we all though CybercrimeCybercrime Cybercrime is a crime related to technology, computers, and the Internet. Typical cybercrime are performed by a computer against a computer, or by a hacker using software to attack computers or networks. couldn’t get any more complicated (with Nation States, Transnational CriminalCriminal A criminal is any person who through a decision or act engages in a crime. This can be complicated, as many people break laws unknowingly, however, in our context, it is a person who makes a decision to engage in unlawful acts or to place themselves with others who do this. A criminal always has the ability to decide not to break the law, or if they initially engage in crime to stop doing it, but instead continues. Enterprise’s, RansomwareRansomware Ransomware is a type of malware from cryptovirology that threatens to publish the victim's personal data or perpetually block access to it unless a ransom is paid. While some simple ransomware may lock the system so that it is not difficult for a knowledgeable person to reverse, more advanced malware uses a technique called cryptoviral extortion. It encrypts the victim's files, making them inaccessible, and demands a ransom payment to decrypt them. In a properly implemented cryptoviral extortion attack, recovering the files without the decryption key is an intractable problem – and difficult to trace digital currencies such as paysafecard or Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that are used for the ransoms, making tracing and prosecuting the perpetrators difficult. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out using a Trojan virus disguised as a legitimate file that the user is tricked into downloading or opening when it arrives as an email attachment. However, one high-profile example, the WannaCry worm, traveled automatically between computers without user interaction., Business Email Compromise, Identity TheftIdentity Theft Identity theft is when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. In both the U.K. and the United States it is the theft of personally identifiable information. Identity theft deliberately uses someone else's identity as a method to gain financial advantages or obtain credit and other benefits, and perhaps to cause other person's loss. The person whose identity has been stolen may suffer adverse consequences, especially if they are falsely held responsible for the perpetrator's actions. Personally identifiable information generally includes a person's name, date of birth, social security number, driver's license number, bank account or credit card numbers, PINs, electronic signatures, fingerprints, passwords, or any other information that can be used to access a person's financial resources., Data Breaches, Theft of IP, Insider Threat…….) we now have to worry about hacktivists groups stealing our local government’s internal memos, financial records, and more from over 200 state, local, and federal agencies of law enforcement data.

But this is the tip of the iceberg – local governments are horrific at managing their data responsibilities nationwide.

This incident just demonstrates that we have reached a tipping point in our trust in local governments. It is time to force data management into competent hands by nationalizing all governmental data management at the Federal Level. The Federal government has the best and the brightest and the ability to keep OUR DATA secure!

We need this now!

Police data is some of the most sensitive there is, and it is common for police to investigate innocent people to determine that no crime has been committed.

What is every complaint or invalid report was made public? This is death by the destruction of everyone’s reputation. Completely false reports will be considered true in the court of public opinion. Not to mention the potential for large-scale blackmail once all this data finds its way onto the DarkNet.

This has to stop and stop now!

We need a national data strategy that protects us all. We need a national cyber defense force – a seventh branch of the military – we need centralization of government data and centralized defense!

Learn more: https://www.wired.com/story/blueleaks-anonymous-law-enforcement-hack