Tag: news

With the NSA already reigning supreme when it comes to the capture of virtually every form of instantaneous electronic communication and interchange, aka the “flow” of data, there is one final threshold that the US superspy agency needed to cross before the biggest brother of all would have full control over not only the flow of information, but its stock too: a photographic database of virtually everyone. And courtesy of not only programs like Facebook, but also its access to government photographic data, the NSA is focusing on just that. As the NYT reports, the agency is “harvesting huge numbers of images of people from communications that it intercepts through its global surveillance operations for use in sophisticated facial recognition programs, according to top-secret documents.”

When we say “focusing”, we mean just that, at a pace that is simply unprecedented:

“The agency intercepts “millions of images per day” — including about 55,000 “facial recognition quality images” — which translate into “tremendous untapped potential,” according to 2011 documents obtained from the former agency contractor Edward J. Snowden. While once focused on written and oral communications, the N.S.A. now considers facial images, fingerprints and other identifiers just as important to its mission of tracking suspected terrorists and other intelligence targets, the documents show.”

The NSA is not shy about its intentions:

“It’s not just the traditional communications we’re after: It’s taking a full-arsenal approach that digitally exploits the clues a target leaves behind in their regular activities on the net to compile biographic and biometric information” that can help “implement precision targeting,” noted a 2010 document.

In addition to its traditionally favorite method of collecting data, namely unauthorized intercepts of emails and other electronic communications, the NSA has a cornucopia of prepared data it can parse.

State and local law enforcement agencies are relying on a wide range of databases of facial imagery, including driver’s licenses and Facebook, to identify suspects. The F.B.I. is developing what it calls its “next generation identification” project to combine its automated fingerprint identification system with facial imagery and other biometric data.

While it is the US State Department that has “what several outside experts say could be the largest facial imagery database in the federal government, storing hundreds of millions of photographs of American passport holders and foreign visa applicants”, what sets the NSA apart, aside from having unchecked access to virtually all electronic data located anywhere in the world, is its ability to match images with huge troves of private communications.

The agency has developed sophisticated ways to integrate facial recognition programs with a wide range of other databases. It intercepts video teleconferences to obtain facial imagery, gathers airline passenger data and collects photographs from national identity card databases created by foreign countries, the documents show. They also note that the N.S.A. was attempting to gain access to such databases in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Iran.

 

One of the N.S.A.’s broadest efforts to obtain facial images is a program called Wellspring, which strips out images from emails and other communications, and displays those that might contain passport images. In addition to in-house programs, the N.S.A. relies in part on commercially available facial recognition technology, including from PittPatt, a small company owned by Google, the documents show.

When asked for comment, an N.S.A. spokesman said the agency did not have access to photographs in state databases of driver’s licenses or to passport photos of Americans, while declining to say whether the agency had access to the State Department database of photos of foreign visa applicants. She also declined to say whether the N.S.A. collected facial imagery of Americans from Facebook and other social media through means other than communications intercepts. Which is a yes.

Ironically, while the NYT reports of several instances of false positives when using the database, the NSA’s, and the administration’s response has been one comparable to what Edward Snowden lamented yesterday when discussing 9/11: instead of focusing on improving the accuracy of its pinpoint matches, the NSA is simply expanding its database making it more unwieldy, and violating even more privacy statutes in the process.

And before someone says it was all Bush’s fault, it appears Obama has taken a keen interest in boosting the NSA’s photo database:

The N.S.A. has accelerated its use of facial recognition technology under the Obama administration, the documents show, intensifying its efforts after two intended attacks on Americans that jarred the White House. The first was the case of the so-called underwear bomber, in which Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian, tried to trigger a bomb hidden in his underwear while flying to Detroit on Christmas in 2009. Just a few months later, in May 2010, Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani-American, attempted a car bombing in Times Square.

Finally, while faces can and do lead to false positive results, with the use of disguises or other reasons, the final frontier that the NSA appears to be gunning for are iris scans, which like fingerprints, are unique to an individual and as such won’t lead to a false identification.

… the agency has considered getting access to iris scans through its phone and email surveillance programs. But asked whether the agency is now doing so, officials declined to comment. The documents also indicate that the N.S.A. collects iris scans of foreigners through other means.  In addition, the agency was working with the C.I.A. and the State Department on a program called Pisces, collecting biometric data on border crossings from a wide range of countries.

And putting it all in context, here is the complete private data architecture which the NSA needs in order to feel complete:

• Biometric/Biologic data: showing individual’s physical traits: face, iris, fingerprints, voice, gait. More examples of this data include:
  • Familial
  • Volitional
  • Individual
  • Sex
  • Height
  • Heat signature
  • Genetic Markers
  • Voiceprint
  • Blood group
  • Language
  • Ritual scarification
  • Recreational drug
  • Medical devices
  • Footprint
  • Hair chemical profile
  • Race
  • Motile
  • Handwriting
  • Typing
  • Gait
  • Limp

• Biographic: data that documents an individual’s life history: name, DOB, address, school, military. More examples of this data include:
  • Core Personal
  • Addresses
  • Educational
  • Employment
  • Judicial
  • Military Service
  • Family
  • Acquired Traits
  • Spouse
  • Children
  • Cohabitants
  • Employees
  • Servants
  • Guests

• Contextual/Behavioral: data that captures an individual’s interactions with the external world: travel, financial behaviors, social network.
  • Financial
  • Public Records
  • Licenses
  • Personal Pattern
  • Commercial Transaction
  • Media Consumption/Production
  • Associates
  • Political Donations
  • Property
  • License Plates
  • Vehicle VINs
  • Tastes/Preferences
  • Accounts records
  • ATM Usage/Transactions
  • Tax Records
  • Credit Ratings

And much more. A full breakdown of the NSA’s comprehensive ambition is outlined in this formerly confidential slide:

 

The full NSA slideshow, courtesy of the NYT:

via Zero Hedge http://ift.tt/1nFzPxb Tyler Durden

DAILY PRICE
Friday’s AM fix was USD 1,254.00, EUR 921.04 and GBP 749.33 per ounce.

Thursday’s AM fix was USD 1,254.00, EUR 921.04 and GBP 749.82 per ounce.

Gold fell almost 1% to a near four month low on Friday, extending its losing streak a fourth consecutive day. For the week, gold lost about 3.5% for its worst decline since late November 2013. Heavy technical selling throughout the week sent bullion prices below $1,250 for the first time since February 4.

Gold in US Dollars – 1 Minute, 5 Days – (Thomson Reuters)

The move lower this week would appear to be technically driven as there was no negative headline data, obvious reasons for price falls or indeed evidence of physical gold selling. Indeed, the mood music for gold is quite positive – especially the worsening situation in Ukraine and attendant geopolitical risk. Gold may have been weighed down by book squaring ahead of month end and technical selling by commodity funds.

One plausible factor for gold’s weakness is the ever increasing, “irrationally exuberant” appetite for risk globally which may be impacting gold. Yesterday, the poor U.S. GDP number, which was much worse than analysts had forecast, did not lead to the bounce in gold that one would have expected. Nor did it lead to weakness in permanently levitating stock markets which continued on their merry way higher.

The simplistic view that the U.S. economy’s poor performance in the first quarter is purely weather related remains prevalent. This is despite increasing evidence that the U.S. consumer is struggling and close to being tapped out. The latter scenario is likely the case which will prove bullish for gold in the long term.

Gold premiums in India almost halved this week on the belief the new government will ease restrictions on imports of the precious metal thereby increasing demand. Indian premiums fell to $30-$40 an ounce over the global benchmark, from $80-$90 last week, dealers told Reuters.

In China, gold premiums ticked slightly higher this week but remain at  around $3 per ounce. Chinese premiums have remained depressed this week, which suggests demand in China has not yet picked up on this week’s price weakness.

Technically, gold is vulnerable to a further fall to test what appears to be a double bottom between $1,180/oz and $1,200/oz. This is particularly the case in the very short term, in other words, today and early next week.

It is worth considering seasonal trends and June is traditionally one of the weakest months for gold (see heatmap). Gold’s 5 year and 10 year average performance in June is negative.

Gold Seasonality Chart – Heatmap (Bloomberg)

It is also worth considering last year’s performance. Gold saw massive concentrated selling in April and further weakness in May – from $1,476/oz to $1,386/oz. Then June saw gold fall again, from $1,386/oz to the $1,200/oz level at the end of June which marked the end of the 2nd quarter, 2013.

This is a time when traders, investors and the media take stock and evaluate the relative performance of various assets. If one were attempting to paint the tape through price manipulation, one would aim to have gold lower at mid year and year end. This is exactly what happened.

This had the effect of greatly reducing “animal spirits” in the gold market and snuffing out the potential for rallies given the very significant global demand that was occurring, especially in China.

Gold then bounced sharply in July and August prior to giving up some of those gains in September, trading sideways in October and then trading lower in November and December prior to the what appears to be the second bottom – exactly at year end 2013 (see chart below).

Gold in U.S. Dollars, Daily, 2 Year – (Thomson Reuters)

Momentum is a powerful force and the short term trend is down and therefore further weakness in the coming days and in June is quite possible.

However, gold’s 14-day relative-strength index fell to 31.2 yesterday. The RSI is an important tool in a traders arsenal. These are the lowest levels since December and being near the 30 level indicates we are due a bounce soon.

Gold frequently sees weakness and bottoms soon after options expiration which took place Tuesday. .
Also, $1,200 should remain support as the $1,200 level is the average cost to produce an ounce of gold globally.

The fundamentals are continuing and heightened geopolitical risk and robust global demand as seen in the recent World Gold Council data. Chinese demand has fallen somewhat in recent weeks but there is now the possibility of the return of Indian gold demand with the newly elected Modi government in India.

While gold is vulnerable technically to further weakness, its fundamentals remain sound. Some of the important gold related stories and developments this week which could yet propel gold higher include Putin’s declaration that Russia and China need to secure their gold and foreign exchange reserves and China’s plans to launch a physical ‘Global Gold Exchange’.

Overnight, ANZ Bank confirmed the story that it is seeking participation in the new international gold exchange in Shanghai. ANZ China CEO was quoted in the Wall Street Journal as saying “we are very keen to play a role in such a setup.”

Currency wars are heating up again and some of the key developments in recent days and weeks are gold bullish.

In recent weeks, Russia dumped a record amount of US treasuries and Russia’s central bank buys 28 metric tonnes of gold worth $1.4 billion in April alone. Last week Russia and China announced a landmark economic agreement which includes a natural gas deal worth $400 billion and increasing use of their own currencies in bilateral trade.

This week Putin said Russia and China need to secure their gold and currency reserves and Russia set  up the Eurasian Economic Union with Belarus and Kazakhstan. Armenia are to join within a month and Kyrgyzstan within a year.

This comes against a backdrop of China openly calling for a de-Americanization of the world in recent months and China, Russia, Iran and 21 other countries signing an agreement bolstering cooperation to promote peace, security and stability in Asia.

China is buying natural resources and hard assets globally and investing in infrastructure in Africa and West Asia in order to extract these natural resources. China is importing unprecedented amounts of physical gold and senior Chinese policy makers and officials have gone on record regarding how they view gold as in important strategic and monetary asset.

Thus, while gold is vulnerable to weakness in the short term, the smart money is again accumulating and will use this latest bout of selling to acquire gold at what will in time be seen as bargain prices.

All fiat currencies including the dollar, euro and pound are vulnerable to devaluations. As one astute commentator said on Twitter this week, being able to acquire cheaper gold given the state of the world today is “like being given discounts on life-rafts on the Titanic …”

Special Notice Regarding Reduction In Premiums: Gold Bars Reduced To 1.6% Premium – Click Here

 

 

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Now that the Ukraine pseudo civil war is slowly drifting off into limbo, with western support for the eastern regions of the nation no longer on the table, and Germany making it clear no further sanctions against Russia are coming, the Ukraine conflict is on its way to becoming a second Syria: a nation split in two, with US support for one group, Russian support for the other, and the only real victor being the Kremlin, which has regained possession of the Crimea (which earlier today officially adopted the Ruble as its currency). Which explains why the US, embarrassed in its foreign affairs for the second year in a row, is pivoting once again, only this time using China as a distraction.

On Friday, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said China has taken “destabilizing, unilateral actions asserting its claims in the South China Sea” (which incidentally is not called the South American Sea). Hagel added that the U.S. will continue to raise cyber issues with China, and by raising he likely meant accusing PLA members of hacking, resulting in China dropping more US tech firms as critical suppliers.Following the Us Defense Secretary, it was the turn of Japan’s PM, Abe who said Japan would give more support to southeast Asian nations that are facing Chinese pressure.

He concluded that the U.S. takes no position on competing territorial claims, however the damage was already done: according the FT, a top Chinese general on Sunday accused the US and Japan of teaming up to stage “provocative actions” against China, as escalating maritime tensions spilled into an Asian regional defense forum.

Because if the US thought its latest pivot away from Russia and Syria into China (even if supported by Japan) would happen seamlessly, it is about to get an unpleasant surprise:

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Wang Guanzhong, deputy chief of the Chinese general staff, lambasted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chuck Hagel, US defence secretary, for telling the forum of Asian defence ministers that China was using intimidation to assert its territorial claims.

 

“The speeches by Mr Abe and Mr Hagel gave me the impression that they co-ordinated with each other, they supported each other, they encouraged each other and they took the advantage of speaking first . . . and staged provocative actions and challenges against China,” said Gen Wang.

 

Mr Hagel on Saturday said China was undermining? its claims that the South China Sea was a “sea of peace, friendship and co-operation” by using coercive tactics, adding that the US would “not look the other way when fundamental principles of the international order are being challenged”.

 

On Friday, Mr Abe said Japan would give more support to southeast Asian nations that are facing Chinese pressure.

As for Japan, China had one word: “fascist.”

In the face of mounting efforts by the US and Japan to shore up or build new security relationships in Asia, Gen Wang said China opposed both the practice of building military alliances and “attempts by any country to dominate regional affairs”. In a jab at Japan’s wartime history, Gen Wang said China would “never allow fascism . . . to stake a comeback”.

In the meantime, with Russia expanding geographically, China is doing the same, and in the process steamrolling over Vietnamese objections.

This year’s event became more heated because of the escalating disputes in the South China Sea and East China Sea. China is embroiled in maritime disputes around the region, including with Manila and Tokyo. Scores of Chinese and Vietnamese ships are also involved in a stand-off near the disputed Paracel Islands after China started drilling for oil there in early May.

 

Gen Wang said China did not take provocative actions, but was being forced to respond to such actions from other countries. But when asked what Vietnam had done to trigger the decision to move the oil rig to disputed waters, sparking the worst crisis in China-Vietnam relations in years, the general did not respond.

 

While Shangri-La is designed to tackle a range of Asia-Pacific security issues, the focus has, in recent years, shifted squarely to China, with most of the participants this year asking China to explain its policies and actions.

Finally, Russia also chimed in:

Some experts questioned whether a new Cold War was emerging in Asia. Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s deputy defence secretary, took exception to comments by Mr Hagel that the US was the only power that could lead in the Asia-Pacific region. “Why does the US have to lead? To lead what?”

Based on his recent remarks at West Point, even Obama is not quite sure of the answer to that.

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