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Windows 8 is a major OS overhaul, but some of the most important additions might be the ones you can't see. Here's a look at Windows 8's new security tools and features.

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By Nate Anderson

The Britain of today is watched constantly by CCTV cameras, is preparing for a national ID card, slaps a "crown copyright" on most government data, and can now censor websites and eventually boot people off the Internet.

According to the new Liberal Democrat/Tory coalition government, that's all about to change.

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It's 2:30 am EST and I'm testing browser compatibility.  What's wrong with this picture?   Anyway, I've tested most of the new member area functionality with IE7 and Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.7 and above; so if you're using the latest from either you're golden!

I've also tested IE6 extensively and noted a few issues related to layout, predominantly due to IE6 and IE5.5 not digging the use of PNG files  At some point I may go back and resolve these issues either through "creative code" or simply converting the images to GIFs, but that likely won't be for several weeks.  Hey, why not just update your darn browser already...they're both free you know!!!  🤪

Found this article from TechCrunch absolutely fascinating.

Prosthetic Retinas displaying a cameras image directly into your noggin using photovoltaic materials, which turn light into electric current. Come on, so cool!

The future is very bright, my friends. Be safe out there & make it a great day!

In the last few weeks, we've added several new features and content areas to Media-Geek, and more are on the way. Some of these updates are specific to our members only area, while others are available to both the public and private sections of the site; such as our new customizable home page.

By default, the new home page displays recent articles from a few of our content areas, such as Member Articles, Media-Geek News, Larry C.'s Blog, and Newsflashes. Both members and visitors can change the number of articles that are displayed on the home page for each of these areas, and they can also re-order the way in which they are displayed using the drag-n-drop icon in the upper-right corder of the display for each area.

Do You Have a Blog or Podcast?

As each day passes law enforcement and government agencies struggle with managing more sources of digital evidence and multimedia, like body worn cameras. The massive amounts of data storage required have led many to finally consider secure cloud-based storage solutions, but as some have found out, despite the minimal capital investment cloud storage costs can quickly exceed the LE & IT budgets of even the largest agencies. Let's break this down and talk specifically about digital evidence and archiving.

How are you archiving all of your digital evidence today? A tiered storage solution? Hybrid cloud solution? LTO tape? Hard drives? Optical discs (i.e. CD-R, DVD+/-R, BD-R)? Lots of questions and options, so lets talk specifically to the last group; those using optical discs.

Today I am honored to report that we made a $2,390 donation to Marshall University's Cyber Forensics & Security program, thanks to the many generous donations we received earlier this year.

Thank you to all of those who donated earlier this year, then re-donated their original donation to support this gift in memory of my dad and brother.  You can view the contribution on Marshall University's Donar Wall.

Keep being great & doing great things, my friends...and have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Although disc-based storage is not as widely used as it once was for digital evidence archiving, it remains a viable solution when properly implemented and managed. In fact, many of the world’s largest technology companies are using and/or exploring disc-based storage systems for long-term offline storage of petabytes of customer data (e.g. Facebook uses 10,000 Blu-ray discs to store 'cold' data). They do so, however, in a managed environment with a thorough understanding of the medium’s strengths and limitations.

Many in law enforcement use write-once disc-based media for MASTER evidence storage, as it continues to be recommended via various industry best practice documents. Unfortunately, not everyone involved in the evidence chain understands the limitations and best practices as they relate to the care and handling of disc-based media. Adhesive labels, permanent markers, and ballpoint pens have destroyed more evidence than I care to even think about.

I'll be in San Diego for IACP 2016 October 15th through the 18th, one of the LE industry's largest trade shows and educational events.

If you'll be attending, stop by the Ocean Systems booth (#2740) to say hello and see what we've been up to. Hope to see you there!

Apple has a new tool for those who manage a herd of iPads or iPhones for schools or small businesses, a free Mac app aimed at making life easier for iOS-focused IT staff. Called Configurator, it allows admins to "mass configure and deploy iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch," 30 devices at a time.

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A peer recently shared this article, as he is one of the co-authors, and I personally feel it contains vital fundamental information for those who testify as Forensic Experts.  Hope you find it helpful.

"The following material was revised from an original article, “Survival Checklist for Medical Experts,” written by Deputy District Attorney Michele McKay-McCoy, Solano County District Attorney’s Office. With her permission, it was revised for forensic experts by Deputy District Attorney Michael S. Groch, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, and Deputy Attorney General Robert M. Morgester, California Department of Justice."

Survival Checklist for Forensic Experts (PDF) 

Evidence Technology Magazine has published their May-June, 2010 issue featuring a story on Forensic Video. The story was written by LEVA's Principal Forensic Video Instructor and features several LEVA members. The question you need to answer: Can video evidence be trusted?

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The Adobe Photoshop 12.0.2 update for Mac and the Adobe Photoshop 12.0.2 update for Windows are now available for download. The Adobe Photoshop 12.0.2 update fixes a number of high priority bugs including painting performance and type-related issues. The most significant fixes in the Photoshop 12.0.2 update include...

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