Forcing Defendant to Decrypt Hard Drive Is Unconstitutional, Appeals Court Rules

Forcing a criminal suspect to decrypt hard drives so their contents can be used by prosecutors is a breach of the Fifth Amendment right against compelled self-incrimination, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

It was the nation’s first appellate court to issue such a finding. And the outcome comes a day after a different federal appeals court refused to entertain an appeal from another defendant ordered by a lower federal court to decrypt a hard drive by month’s end.

Thursday’s decision by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that an encrypted hard drive is akin to a combination to a safe, and is off limits, because compelling the unlocking of either of them is the equivalent of forcing testimony.

The case at hand concerns an unidentified “Doe” defendant believed to be in possession of child pornography on 5 terabytes of data on several drives and laptops seized in a California motel with valid court warrants.

The Atlanta-based circuit held:

First, the decryption and production of the hard drives would require the use of the contents of Doe’s mind and could not be fairly characterized to a physical act that would be non-testimonial in nature. We conclude that the decryption and production would be tantamount to testimony by Doe of his knowledge of the existence and location of potentially incriminating files; of his possession, control and access to the encrypted portions of the drives; and of his capability to decrypt the files.

The court added: “Requiring Does to use a decryption password is most certainly more akin to requiring the production of a combination because both demand the use of the contents of the mind, and the production is accompanied by the implied factual statements noted above that could prove to be incriminatory.”

The defendant in April had refused to comport with a Florida federal grand jury’s orders that he decrypt the data, which was encrypted with TrueCrypt. A judge held him in contempt and jailed him until December 15, when the circuit court released him ahead of Thursday’s ruling.

“The government’s attempt to force this man to decrypt his data put him in the Catch-22 the Fifth Amendment was designed to prevent — having to choose between self-incrimination or risking contempt of court,” said EFF senior staff attorney Marcia Hofmann, who had filed an amicus brief in the case.

In the other decryption case, the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday sided with the government’s contention that Colorado bank-fraud defendant Ramona Fricosu must be convicted before the circuit court would entertain an appeal of a decryption order.

The court did not address the 5th Amendment arguments and instead said the case was not procedurally ripe for appeal.

Fricosu’s attorney, Philip Dubois, said in a telephone interview Friday that new developments in the case may moot the constitutional showdown in his client’s case.

He said a co-defendant, Scott Whatcott, has forwarded passwords to the authorities.

Dubios said it was not immediately known whether those passwords would unlock the hard drive in the Toshiba laptop seized from Fricosu with valid warrants in 2010. If they do, then the 5th Amendment issue is off the table, Dubois said.

If the passwords don’t work, Dubois said, Fricosu “will definitely make her best effort” to decrypt the laptop, although she may have forgotten the password.

U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn has ordered Fricosu to decrypt the laptop by month’s end.

Dubois said that, on Monday, he would provide Judge Blackburn with the 11th Circuit’s opinion in the child pornography case as part of a last-ditch effort to halt the decryption order.

That said, Blackburn is not bound by the 11th Circuit decision because his court is in the 10th Circuit.

David Kravets is a senior staff writer for Wired.com and founder of the fake news site TheYellowDailyNews.com. He's a dad of two boys and has been a reporter since the manual typewriter days.
Follow @dmkravets and @ThreatLevel on Twitter.

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Report: Google-Branded Tablet to Land in April

Google's Nexus tablet could be the company's next hardware device. Jon Snyder/Wired.com

The long-awaited Android-running, Google-branded tablet reportedly arrives in April.

The device is aimed squarely at the dominant, and cheap, Amazon Kindle Fire, which is the world’s leading 7-inch Android device. The tablet, which former CEO Eric Schmidt first mentioned in December, also would advance Google’s plan to create a unified software and hardware ecosystem — just like that company in Cupertino.

Richard Shim, an analyst with DisplaySearch, told CNET the Google tablet is on track for production in April and is expected to cost $199. It will sport a 7-inch, 1280×800 display and run Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0). Those specs, if they pan out, one-up the Kindle Fire, which also costs $199 but has a 1024×600 display and runs on a modified version of Gingerbread (Android 2.3).

Should the tablet actually materialize, it would be yet another entry in Google’s sweeping hardware initiative. Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility will give the search company a ready-to-go hardware division. The tablet also would follow the rumored music-streaming entertainment device that would take advantage of the proposed Android@Home initiative announced at Google I/O.

This week The New York Times reported that Google is working on HUD glasses that could be formally announced by the end of the year.

Beyond its internal hardware initiatives, Google has partnered with HTC and Samsung for its Nexus-branded smartphones. The current crop of Nexus flagship phones were the first Android phones powered by Ice Cream Sandwich.

Indeed, all the rumored hardware and the Motorola Mobility acquisition suggest Google is positioning itself as a company that owns the entire “product stack,” from operating system to app ecosystem to hardware. This, of course, is the strategy employed by Google’s main rival in the mobile market, Apple.

Should Google continue down this path, it may be the next company, to “own the whole widget,” as Steve Jobs would say.

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Sleeping pills linked to almost fourfold increase in death risk

Sleeping pills prescribed by your physician are supposed to ward off the myriad health problems that come with lack of sleep.

But adults who take sleeping pills in even small numbers over their lifetimes may be nearly four times more likely to die earlier compared to those who are not prescribed sleeping pills, according to new findings published Monday in the British Medical Journal. And those prescribed sleeping pills may also be more likely to be diagnosed with cancer, the study found.

Researchers looked at electronic medical records of nearly 35,000 patients, fewer than half of whom took such FDA-approved sleep medications as Ambien, Restoril, Lunesta, and Sonata. They found that even those who look fewer than 18 sleeping pills a year were at greater risk of death, compared to those who were not prescribed sleeping aids.

An estimated 50 to 70 million Americans suffer from insomnia and other sleep disorders, which can keep them from functioning normally during the day. Untreated sleep disorders can lead to conditions like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

For more information on sleep,visit the ABC News OnCall+ Sleep Center, where top experts answer your questions on sleep.

Such consequences from sleep disorders leave many doctors asking whether the findings from this study really suggest that sleeping pills are to blame, or whether those who take sleeping pills are at higher risk because of health conditions that potentially brought on the sleeping problems.

The study did not say why the patients were prescribed the sleeping medications, whether the patients were evaluated by a sleep specialist, or whether they were also undergoing other types of treatment for any underlying health conditions -- all important factors when weighing an increased risk of death, said Dr. Steven Scharf, professor of medicine at the University of Maryland in Baltimore.

"Most chronic conditions, including cancer, are associated with insomnia and mortality," said Scharf. "Who knows what the cause here was?"

Six to 10 percent of Americans were prescribed sleeping pills in 2010, according to the study.

Sleep disorders can also be considered symptoms of underlying mental and physical conditions.

In fact, those in the study who were prescribed sleeping medications had higher rates of heart disease, diabetes and other conditions which may contribute to sleeplessness.

"I think the underlying conditions which may require sedative-hypnotics are the culprits, not the medicines themselves," said Dr. Scott Nelson, a family practice physician at Cleveland Family Medicine.

Many experts said these findings should not prompt patients to stop taking their medications.

"I think sleeping pills are helpful when there are short term stressors," said Dr. Richard Colgan, associate professor in the department of family and community medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Sleeping pills can be helpful for those who work unusual shifts, and for those who travel across time zones, said Colgan.

But the medications are not without side effects -- including drowsiness, impaired judgment, depression and heart problems. Misuse can be fatal. And, according to Dr. Lee Green, a professor in the department of family medicine at the University of Michigan, the risks outweigh the benefits.

Medication to treat sleeplessness is not as important as treating the underlying condition, he said.

"Sedation worsens sleep apnea, for example, and we know sleep apnea is associated with risk of death," said Green. "We tend to think that a sleeping pill once in a while is harmless, but there's no such thing as a medication free of risk."

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Museum seeks royal plane wreckage

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
24 February 2012 Last updated at 10:06 GMT Maharaja Hanwant Singh died in a plane crash in 1952 A museum in India's Rajasthan state has asked Jodhpur Central Jail to hand over the wreckage of an aircraft that crashed in 1952, killing Maharaja Hanwant Singh and his mistress.

The remains of the light aircraft were found in the jail's cellar last year, nearly 60 years after the crash.

Officials think the wreckage was kept in the jail because it was bad luck.

The museum is yet to decide what they will do with the plane's wreckage once they get possession of it.

The Maharaja of Jodhpur, Hanwant Singh, died in the plane crash with his mistress Zubeida while he was campaigning in newly independent India's first general elections in 1952.

The light aircraft, a Beechcraft Bonanza, was the flying maharaja's favourite.

Though he was married to royal princess Krishna Kumari, he spent his last days with Zubeida.

Popular museum

The wreckage was left unattended in the Jodhpur jail for decades.

According to the jail officials, the wreckage was found when staff there looked through a pile of rubble.

"First we thought it could be a wreckage from the Indo-Pak war, when Pakistan bombs hit the city and some inmates were killed. But later we found it is the wreckage of the late Maharaja Hanwant Singh's plane," a senior officer of the jail told the BBC.

The Mehrangarh Museum Trust, founded in 1972 by Maharaja Gaj Singh has sent a formal letter to the jail authorities seeking possession of the wreckage.

Jodhpur Jail Superintendent AR Niazi told the BBC the issue would be referred to the government for the final decision.

The director of the trust, Mahendra Singh Nagar, said it was not clear what they would do with the wreckage, "but it will be part of the museum trust".

The wreckage is kept in the jail

The Mehrangarh Museum draws a large number of tourists - over 70,000 foreign visitors and 400,000 Indians, annually.

Hanwant Singh fielded candidates in the country's first general elections and gave the Congress Party a tough challenge.

He himself won a state assembly seat as well one in the Indian parliament.

But he died in the plane crash before the results were declared.

Noted film producer Shyam Benegal's film Zubeidaa highlighted the mistress's story. It was written by Zubeida's son Khalid Mohammed.

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Nokia preparing an Update for Nokia Belle 1st Generation phones

After yesterday’s bad news for the owners of Nokia Belle first generation phones, the Nokia N8, C7, C6-01, E7 and X7, Nokia has confirmed that a separated update is being prepared.

The Official confirmation came from discussions.europe.nokia.com forums by a moderator that have reported that Nokia is gathering feedback from the recent update released and new changes and fixes should come soon. Here’s the post in question:

[Thanks djak272 for the tip]

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10-year-old girl's death in fight with student ruled homicide

Joanna Ramos, 10, died after getting into a fight with another schoolgirl.

The death of a 10-year-old Southern California schoolgirl after a fight with another student has been ruled a homicide, the coroner said today.

Investigators said Joanna Ramos, a fifth-grader at Willard Elementary School in Long Beach, died from blunt-force trauma to the head.

"They did surgery on her brain because she had a blood clot, and after surgery the doctor said she was still alive, and then a few minutes later he comes back and tells us that her heart stopped and they couldn't bring her back," Joanna's sister, Vanessa Urbina, told the Associated Press.

Joanna died at 9 p.m. Friday. Earlier that afternoon, she and another fifth-grade girl had planned to fight in an alley near the school.

"They were fighting over a boy, just for a boy," classmate Stephanie Soltero told ABC News affiliate KABC, crying. "It's just stupid."

Police said there were seven witnesses to the fight, which lasted less than a minute and didn't involve any weapons. No arrests have been made, the AP reported.

After the fight, Joanna returned to her after-school program with blood on her knuckles from wiping a bloody nose. She also complained of a headache, prompting the school to call her parents. Joanna was unconscious and not breathing when family members took her to the hospital at about 5:50 p.m., according to police.

"There are times when words do not convey a sense of sadness and loss that we feel. This was one of those times," Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster said Saturday. "It's hard to understand how this can happen. If you're like me, you're also thinking of your own children, perhaps your daughter or your granddaughter, and you get a sense of how precious life really is."

Outside Willard Elementary School, friends left balloons, candles, stuffed animals, flowers and letters to Joanna.

Olivia Katrandjian, the Associated Press and  ABC News affiliate KABC contributed to this report.

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10 No-Brainers for Boosting Revenue

Little things can mean a lot.

The business world is filled with “why didn’t I think of that” examples of straightforward product and service additions that have pumped sales and pleased patrons.

Two of McDonald’s’ [MCD  Loading...      ()   ] best-selling items — the Egg McMuffin and Big Mac — were the brainchild of single franchisees looking to spice up their menu. Perhaps the single greatest thing ever to happen to Subway is the modest price promotion a Miami franchise launched that became the omnipresent “$5 footlong” phenomenon.

The notion of selling breakfast was hardly a radical idea when McDonald’s [MCD  Loading...      ()   ] looked to extend its sales day in the 1970s, but it was a novel one that has paid off. Today, breakfast sales account for roughly 25 percent of all revenue for the chain and its competitors — including, recently, Subway and Taco Bell — are stepping up their morning efforts. About 60 percent of restaurant traffic growth over the past five years has come from breakfast sales, according to analysts at NPD Group, a leading market research company.

Improving coffee offerings has also been a small improvement that has paid off big for McDonald’s. Its so-called McCafe locations average about 15 percent more in revenue because of those selections.

When Starbucks [SBUX  Loading...      ()   ] pulled the word “coffee” from its signs, some wondered what it was up to and whether it signaled a move toward an expanded menu. Among the simple changes driving increased revenue: juice. Last year it bought juice maker Evolution Fresh in a $30 million deal intended to make itself more attractive to noncoffee drinkers.

Analysts at IBISWorld, the world’s largest independent publisher of U.S. industry research, offered us a variety of relatively simple ways companies can increase sales, be more effective and/or satisfy customers.

Among them: More retailers should offer in-store returns to attract online purchases from consumers who would otherwise withhold a purchase if they dread mailing back an item; using social media instead of focus groups for branding initiatives; fitness clubs could move away from long-term contracts and to month-to-month memberships; point of sale/on the floor checkout, as practiced by Apple [AAPL  Loading...      ()   ] and Nordstrom [JWN  Loading...      ()   ] , should be adopted by more retailers; more stores could take a cue from the success Kmart had offering layaway during the holidays.

It isn’t always as easy as it might sound to enact even a simple change in strategy or product offering, says Stephen Baker, NPD’s primary hardware analyst.

“It is hard to see that there could be any real low-hanging fruit out there, something that is so obvious that somebody else wouldn't have already plucked it,” he says. “I really think we are at a point in the maturity of the business where it’s just not that easy. We know the things that consumers are going to want going forward, and they aren't easy things to do. They are higher fruit. They are not devices, they are much more likely to be services or support or something else to make people's lives easier.”

That said, he does agree there can be strokes of genius.

“I was an original employee at Staples,” he says. “I sat down and listened to people tell me what they were going to do, and I was like, ‘Why hasn't anybody ever thought of this before? This is a great idea.’ [Founder Thomas G. Stemberg] is worth hundreds of millions of dollars and deserves every penny of it for being able to think up, and follow through with, that kind of a great idea, one so obvious and so simple that it seems like somebody else would have thought of it. His alternate go-to-market plan was to do a pet superstore. So not only did he have one great idea, he had two great ideas.”

They may not be as grandiose as the business model for office-supplies giant Staples [SPLS  Loading...      ()   ] or PetSmart [PETM  Loading...      ()   ] , but we took a look at 10 simple — perhaps even “no-brainer” — ideas that could help various companies increase sales, accrue revenue, and keep customers happy:

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