Entries Tagged "humor"
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APEC Conference in Sydney Social Engineered
The APEC conference is a big deal in Australia right now, and the security is serious. They’ve blocked off a major part of Sydney, implemented special APEC laws allowing extra search powers for the police, and even given everyone in Sydney the day off—just to keep people away.
Yesterday, a TV comedy team succeeded in driving a fake motorcade with Canadian flags right through all the security barriers and weren’t stopped until right outside President Bush’s hotel. Inside their motorcade was someone dressed up as Osama Bin Laden.
The ABC later released a statement saying the team had no intention of entering a restricted zone and had been wearing mock “insecurity passes” that stated the convoy was a joke.
“It was a piece testing APEC security and the motorcade looked pretty authentic,” the Chaser source said.
“They approached the green zone, and they just waved them through much to their amazement, because the sketch was meant to stop there with them being rejected.
“They were then waved through into the red zone, but rather than go all the way through they made the call to turn around.”
“Apparently that was the first time the police realised it was not authentic and they swooped in and arrested everybody.”
Eight members of the comedy team, including the film crew, were arrested, as well as three hire car drivers.
The fake motorcade three cars and a motorcycle escort had Canadian identification.
“We just thought Canada would be a country the cops wouldn’t scrutinise too closely,” said Chaser performer Chris Taylor.
Another article.
I’ve written about these large-scale social engineering pranks before (although at this point I doubt that the Super Bowl prank was real). The trick: look like you fit in.
I’ve also written about the Australian comedy group before. They’re from a television show called The Chaser’s War on Everyhing, and they’ve tested security cameras and Trojan horses. And interviewed ignorant Americans.
And APEC security is over-the-top stupid:
On the same day police won a court battle to stop protesters marching down George Street through the APEC security zone, it emerged yesterday that at least one cafe near George Bush’s hotel has been ordered by police not to set outdoor tables with silverware, lest it fall into the wrong hands.
And office workers in Bridge Street’s AMP tower have been told to stay away from the windows, draw the blinds and not to look at helicopters.
EDITED TO ADD (9/7): Video of the motorcade and the arrests. Photo of the fake security pass.
Great video from The Chasers on APEC and security, including some very funny footage about what normal people are willing to do and have done to them in the name of security.
Security Problem Excuse Bingo
Very funny, from Matt Blaze and Jutta Degener.
Movie-Plot-Threat Presidential Debate Questions
Gentlemen, here’s the scenario: As you are flying home from Moscow—having told the world you will never deal with terrorists—hijackers, posing as reporters, seize Air Force One. They vow to kill a hostage every half-hour, including your wife and daughter, until you release a murderous Russian general. I’ll start with Senator Obama. Do you negotiate with the hijackers in the hope of saving lives, or do you flee into the bowels of the craft, then pick them off, one by one, with makeshift shanks and your bare hands?
Candidates, pay attention: An international financier has smuggled an atom bomb into Fort Knox. He loves only gold. Only gold. After an amazing sequence of events, including car chases, sexual conquests, and your defeat of the assassin known as Oddjob, you find yourself staring at the interior of a nuclear device. The final seconds are ticking down. This goes to you, Senator Clinton: Do you cut the blue wire, or do you cut the red wire?
A tornado has transported you to a magical land, where a jubilant throng of midgets greets you as liberator. They direct you toward a road paved with yellow bricks. We’ll start with you, Mayor Giuliani. Would you consider capturing one of these exotic creatures and subjecting him or her to enhanced interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding and electric shock, if it means extracting vital information that will determine whether the yellow route leads home—or into a trap?
More questions in the article.
Intel Security Music Video
…directed by Christopher Guest: hardware vs software security.
I don’t know what to say. I can’t believe the actors kept a straight face.
"Hut 33"
A new BBC Radio comedy:
Set in Bletchley Park, in 1941, this sitcom focuses on 3 code-breakers forced to share a draughty wooden hut as they try to break German ciphers. Unfortunately they hate one another.
Real-World Trojan Horse
Here’s a clip from an Australian TV programme called “The Chaser”. A Trojan Horse (full of appropriately attired soldiers) finds its way past security everywhere except the Turkish consulate.
At least they remember their history.
The Onion on Terrorist Cell Apathy
“We remain wholly committed to the destruction of America, the Great Satan,” al-Sharif said. “But now is not a good time for us. The season finale of Lost was such a cliff- hanger that we have to at least catch the first episode of the new season. After that, though, death to the infidels.”
“Probably,” added al-Sharif, who noted that his nearly $6,000 in credit-card debt from recent purchases of a 52-inch HDTV and a backyard gas grill prevents him from buying needed materials for the attack.
Though the members of the cell said that they “live only to spill the blood of crusaders who oppress Muslims,” they cited additional reasons for the delay, including an unexpired free Netflix trial and nagging lower-back pain.
“I think I’m entitled to a little time to fully enjoy the in-dash MP3 adapter and heads-up display that Allah, in His infinite wisdom, has seen fit to provide me with,” munitions expert Mohammed Akram said of the 2006 Mercury Mariner that is intended to be used as a car bomb during the attack. “Also, I have nine months left on the lease. But after that, I am more than willing to load it with explosives and go to my glory in its all-leather interior and heated seats.”
Sidebar photo of Bruce Schneier by Joe MacInnis.