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It seems so Orwellian. But according to a bombshell report by The Washington Post the National Security Agency (NSA) have been tapping into the central servers of nine top U.S. Internet companies. It is part of a highly classified program code-named PRISM that began in 2007, reports The Guardian. The tap is all encompassing,  allegedly collecting audio, video, photos, emails, documents, and connection logs that let analysts follow a user’s movements and contacts from Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, Paltalk, AOL, Skype, YouTube, and Apple.

And it seems the government bypassed getting permission from the companies. “Senior officials from the aforementioned Internet companies told the Guardian that they did not offer direct access to servers and that if data collection was taking place, it was without their knowledge,” reports The Daily Beast in their Cheat Sheet snapshot of the scandal.  But the government says that the reports of the tapping are not fully correct. National Intelligence director James Clapper issued a statement on his website stating that the reports “contain numerous inaccuracies” and that the collection of communications “cannot be used to intentionally target any U.S. citizen, any other U.S. person, or anyone located within the United States.”

The snooping scandal has been at full boil for the past couple of days, first with revelations, also from The Guardian, that the NSA was collecting data from millions of Verizon customers. “The document shows for the first time that under the Obama administration the communication records of millions of US citizens are being collected indiscriminately and in bulk – regardless of whether they are suspected of any wrongdoing,” the article says. This contradicts some of what’s being said at this point — Are people in the US being watched or not? Who? What? Huh? — but at this point, with more information coming out, it’s inevitable that things are going to need to be hashed out. It’s clear, however, based on what’s being pushed out, that the surveillance is widespread.

Today, President Obama defended the surveillance, saying during a press conference, “Nobody is listening to your telephone calls… You can’t have 100 percent security and then also have 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience.” According to Obama, Congress and judges on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court were making sure that the surveillance didn’t overstep any bounds.

Despite the concern and controversy, many Americans are kind of giving the whole thing a bit of a “meh,” feeling as though the revelations only confirm what was already a widely-known secret. But, according to The New York Times, while people were, for instance, very upset about news that Harvard University had taken a peek at the email messages sent by faculty members earlier this year, “[b]y every indication, the continued concern about domestic terrorism has colored the way Americans are reacting to intrusions in their privacy.”

So how do you feel about this? Are you surprised?

Tonya Garcia contributed to this post.

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Twitter is fighting back after being hit by hackers last week, announcing that it will boost its log in security. The social media network will introduce a “two-factor authentication” system, which it says will make it impossible for hackers to break into accounts — even if they have acquired the passwords.

The “2FA” system blocks access from new devices or Internet addresses, even when using the correct password, unless accompanied by a short numerical code that is sent separately to the account owner’s mobile phone, reports UK’s The Guardian newspaper. Google already offers this option for its Gmail accounts.

Under the 2FA systems, account owners are notified when attempts are made to hijack an account. If someone attempts to log in to the account from a new device, app, or unfamiliar location the two-factor authentication system will prevent the log in being approved. “A code will be sent to the registered user’s mobile phone, and only when that has been entered in the same log in page is access given to the account,” explains The Guardian.

Twitter had to reset the passwords on at least 250,000 accounts that were affected, after hackers broke into its systems. The hackers were suspected of accessing users’ data, including email addresses and encrypted passwords. Account holders were notified by email.

“This attack was not the work of amateurs, and we do not believe it was an isolated incident. The attackers were extremely sophisticated, and we believe other companies and organizations have also been recently similarly attacked,” Bob Lord, Twitter’s director of information security, wrote in the company’s blog (via The LA Times).

Will this make you feel safer?

Source: WENN

I tell you, the public perception of Matthew Knowles has gone so far downhill since the days of Beyonce’s “Daddy” track on her first album.  After rumors of infidelity — and then proof of it when Alexsandra Wright got pregnant and sought child support from the man some consider to be the modern-day Joe Jackson — plus a divorce from Miss Tina, even Bey had to distance herself from her papa, at least in the public eye. The lack of father-daughter public appearances likely won’t change anytime soon now that Alexsandra is trying to stick it to Matthew again with claims that he’s been threatening her.

According to TMZ, Alexsandra is asking a family court judge to increase her child support so that she can pay for security to protect her 2-year-old son from Matthew, whom she claims has been sending her threatening emails. In September 2011 (yes, you read that year correctly), he reportedly wrote to her and said, “”You hurt my family. There’s a price to pay.”

Now, Alexsandra is trying to put her own price on Matthew, who already pays $12,000 a month in child support. I’d imagine she could find a decent bouncer already with that type of cash flowing in on a monthly basis, which is why this entire legal stunt sounds more like a case for padding her bank account than a legitimate concern for safety. After all, wouldn’t you seek a restraining order not money for personal security? There’s also a request from Alexsandra for money to cover expenses for private school for their son who, again, is only 2 years old.

Matthew seems to not be stressing this ordeal much, as TMZ reports he expects this move to completely backfire on the mother of his child considering Destiny’s Child is defunct and he hasn’t managed Beyonce for two years now. In other words, his money ain’t what it used to be so the amount of support he pays could actually be reduced once the courts start examining his finances.

Now as far as Matthew threatening somebody? Who knows. But if he really said Alexsandra hurt his family, I’m gonna need this brotha to start with the man in the mirror. Was she the one cheating on her wife? Didn’t think so.

Source: MTV.com

President Obama has often referenced his daughter in the past few months on the campaign trail, mostly in reference to protecting women’s rights. But this time, in a recent interview with MTV’s Sway, the president spoke about his biggest concern for Malia specifically. Sway came at the president with three potential fears he has for Malia. See what he had to say.

I really dug the part about the girls finding men who recognize their worth. Something tells me that this won’t be an issue for Malia or Sasha.

If you’ve ever been turned away from a club at the discretion of a power-thirsty security guard, you can sympathize with Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz (and maybe laugh just a little). There’s no other way to say it but to note the couple got straight up played the other night when trying to have a night out in NYC. According to the NY Daily News the couple was delayed at the door because no one knew who they were.

Fame opens doors — but can’t always get you through them. Just ask Alicia Keys and her hubby, Swizz Beatz, who a source says “had a hard time getting inside” the Avenue A Soundcheck party at Toy in the Hotel Gansevoort on Monday night. The issue was “due to security not recognizing them” and a packed house that included Tyson Beckford, “a ton of models,” a performance by Roma! and a deejay set by Nima Yamini.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume these weren’t bouncers of color, but still. Who really doesn’t know who either one of this pair is?! I’m also curious whether these security guards are still employed.

Source: Baller Alert

This could just be another salacious Internet story or a case of a very protective father/ex-husband, we’ll let you decide. Gossip Extra is reporting that rapper Lil Wayne isn’t taking any chances that his ex Toya Wright could end up in a domestic violence situation like K. Michelle, the former girlfriend of Toya’s husband Memphitz. So to ensure all is well in their household, Weezy F Baby reportedly drops $10,000/month on security guards to watch over Toya and their daughter Reginae.

In theory, this sounds probable, but I can’t see a man (Memphitz) allowing another man (Lil Wayne) to stash security at his house. It would be one thing if the couple wasn’t married and Toya had her own spot with her daughter, but having her own personal security to protect her from the husband she’s living with, just in case? This might be a bit far-fetched. Not acording to one of the site’s sources, though, who reportedly said:

“You bet that Lil Wayne is concerned. He mostly wants to make sure their daughter never gets caught in the middle of anything.”

Memphitz’ spokesperson reportedly had no comment on the topic when asked. I don’t know if that makes this story seem more true or not, but if this news is real, good looking out papa Wayne. Hopefully security will never have to jump into action.

What do you think? If Weezy hired security to look after Toya and Reginae is that a good move?

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bodas.net

Ever since I can remember, my younger sister dreamed of her wedding day. Me? Not so much. It’s not because I didn’t believe in marriage, weddings, fairy tales and unicorns, but because it was something that I knew should last forever, and therefore required the utmost thought and care. But some women (and men) romanticize the notion of marriage. Not that bridesmaids, flowers, veils and wedding cakes aren’t dreamy, but many studies have shown that so many couples are SO in love with the idea of being married that they’ve walked down the aisle even though their hearts were filled with dread.

Your inner voice is powerful, yet so many of us fail to listen to it. If you’re considering marriage, but are on the fence, save yourself some time and heartache and really ask yourself if you’re getting married for all the right reasons. If you’re unsure, here are some reasons you SHOULDN’T be getting married just for the hell of it.

Read the rest of this entry »

Source: Hot 107.9

Chris Brown’s girlfriend is finding out Rihanna isn’t the only one she has to worry about when it comes to her relationship. Rih Rih’s fans have apparently sent some nasty messages to Karrueche and now she’s scared to leave the house without security.

According to TMZ, the drama escalated when Rihanna tweeted the image of the dressed up rice cakes last week. While she never confirmed that she was taking shots at Karrueche, Rihanna’s fans took it to heart, and took things a step further with death threats. She reportedly received a slew of messages along the lines of “I hope Rihanna beat the dog s*** outa yo a**!”to “Watch yo back” and “I will kill you.”

This sounds eerily similar to Amber Rose talking about Kanye’s fans threatening her when she and Ye broke up. Luckily for Karrueche Tran, Chris Brown is said to be supportive of his girlfriend and he’s telling her not to worry, although he has hired security to make her feel more safe. In this instance, he’s probably right about not giving it a second thought. I’m sure Rihanna’s fans are doing what most people do on Twitter: just talking ish.

Do you think the drama surrounding Chris Brown, Karrueche Tran, and Rihanna will ever calm down?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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As much as some would like to think that Halle is trying to take little Nahla to France with her out of some sort of spite against Gabriel Aubry, and other media sources claim she wants to do so because she’s engaged to boyfriend Oliver Martinez, she says her hopeful move is to escape the threat of violence against herself or her family.

Berry filed the request to move to France with her daughter because, according to E! News, two men who are no longer locked up for stalking and threatening the actress are now out of jail. One who was actually convicted and sentenced to over a year in prison was released on Saturday, and while there is a 10-year restraining order against the guy to stay away from Berry and her family, she’s not feeling the concept of sitting back and relaxing to see what will happen next. In her complaint, she had the following to say about the man, whose name is Richard Franco:

“This person has invaded and trampled upon the most fundamental sense of security I have and I am extremely frightened of him and what he might do to me and those I love.”

On top of that, a man who was put in a mental hospital in ’96 after threatening to slit both Madonna and Berry’s throats (Madonna’s people shot him after he found his way on her property in ’95), escaped from a mental hospital last week. The fool was finally apprehended by police this afternoon.

This is some crazy mess straight out of the movies. Before folks jump to conclusions about her, I think we can all admit that this is a good reason to be worried or to want to move–however, I don’t know if France would have been my first thought for house-hunting, no matter how fabulous the place is (and yes, it’s very fabulous). I think from all the photos that have been taken of her, Halle needs to step up the security game around her, because she’s usually alone when she hits the streets for errands or goes out with Nahla. That might be the better idea as opposed to going far away from Gabriel Aubry and all that she’s used to. But I guess only she knows what’s best option or idea for herself and her baby. What would you do in this situation?

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