Russia influences election

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Thu Mar 09, 2017 7:18 pm

Sean Hannity is pushing hard with the narrative that CIA "misattributed" hacks to make them look like Russia did it.

This is surreal. The Right is now invested in the theory that the no-good liberal CIA framed innocent Russia in order to help Obama by getting Trump elected.

I am confused. Also nauseated.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:22 am

If you wanted to communicate easily with someone, and not use emails - a private, encrypted VPN connection where you share a few Word Docs seems like a very basic and very easy to delete method. Low tech, easy to use, easy to clean up, hard to follow.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 9:33 am

Paingod wrote:If you wanted to communicate easily with someone, and not use emails - a private, encrypted VPN connection where you share a few Word Docs seems like a very basic and very easy to delete method. Low tech, easy to use, easy to clean up, hard to follow.

Not so much hard to follow - someone looking will see encrypted traffic from a source to destination - but hard to actually see. The clean up is true if reasonably good techniques are used including wiping data securely. A very temporary way would be VPN, screen share via something like team viewer with a shared interface, and open a notepad and type to each other. As long as memory usage was low there is little chance that cache would get written to disk. Nothing would ever hit the disk. Reboot it after that is completed and nothing will be in memory. The only real weak spots at that point would be view-ability of the actual screen and whether an adversary had compromised the endpoints or not.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 9:58 am

malchior wrote:Not so much hard to follow - someone looking will see encrypted traffic from a source to destination

That's the link they're seeing between servers, right? I mean, if you've got an outbound port on the firewall that you've changed from the default, they don't really know what traffic there was between the two. It could have been a VPN connection, or an infection in Trump's server that was calling home to Russia and cleaned out later.

I'll be curious to see what they find - if anything - beyond knowing there was some kind of link between the two.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:16 am

My guess is that the Donald was wiring money to an account for a Nigerian prince. But Barron shut that shit down once he realized what dad was doing.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:34 am

Paingod wrote:That's the link they're seeing between servers, right? I mean, if you've got an outbound port on the firewall that you've changed from the default, they don't really know what traffic there was between the two. It could have been a VPN connection, or an infection in Trump's server that was calling home to Russia and cleaned out later.

There is almost always an unencrypted start to a VPN connection that can be seen. Initial handshakes, key exchanges, etc. generally are in the clear. In any case protocol analysis would easily detect encryption even if it was just encrypted from start to finish. There will be a hint that something is happening.

I'll be curious to see what they find - if anything - beyond knowing there was some kind of link between the two.

The oddity is that after they said they turned off the 'spam' marketing server - *something* came back up and connected again. I don't think absent getting onto the system in question that particular communication path will be anything but a small part of the narrative that emerges. I don't know if they'd find a smoking gun - that tends to be rare in this game. Usually you get indicators of activity that build a circumstantial case.

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 11:04 am

The smoking gun is the epidemic of suddenly dead Russian diplomats as Putin covers his tracks.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 11:28 am

I suppose my mind went to VPN as the "link" but I suppose any app can try and call home.

I had a software vendor once who asked if he could bring his dev box in as a testing ground and the second he connected it to the network, it started spamming out across the world from a dozen security holes he hadn't bothered to correct. Long after it was gone, I had services continuing to hit the firewall looking for it. I build him a nice new testbed in a virtual server to play with, and am glad I had put him on an 'external' network connected directly to the firewall (but not able to see into the rest of it).

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 2:59 pm

So this is normal, right?

(For those that can't see the Tweet, the State Department has ordered the NYC Medical Examiner not to disclose the cause of death for the Russian ambassador to the UN).

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 4:19 pm

Probably just natural causes, I guess.

Hamsterball_Z · Post by **Hamsterball_Z** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 4:25 pm

Anyone follow Rachel Maddow? Wednesday's show she was putting forth the theory that Russian meddling is still going on in the form of gutting the State Department. Worth a watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7h7udyJsJA

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 4:49 pm

Hamsterball_Z wrote:Anyone follow Rachel Maddow? Wednesday's show she was putting forth the theory that Russian meddling is still going on in the form of gutting the State Department. Worth a watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7h7udyJsJA

Your link seems dead, but we've been talking about Maddow's recent reporting in the Trump Presidency Thread.

Hamsterball_Z · Post by **Hamsterball_Z** » Fri Mar 10, 2017 4:51 pm

Thanks, must have missed it. Too many threads!

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 10:39 am

Comey confirms that there's an FBI investigation into the Russia hacks and whether Trump people colluded with them.

Good thing he made sure that everyone knew about some e-mails that may or may not relate to something that may or may not be connected to Clinton 11 days before the election! #ThanksComey.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 10:44 am

Just saw this too. Im not certain Comey is doing anyone favors here. This whole thing is a hot mess. And Comey is definitely a big part of it. But what can you expect...paladins always ruin everything.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 11:14 am

Comey (testifying before Congress today) has also said that there was no wiretap of Trump Tower.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 12:25 pm

The opening remarks today are worth listening to - 8 minutes or so. Schiff does a good job laying out the time series of events that invite the scrutiny we are seeing now.

Edit: I've had this on and I'm expecting this to go nowhere unless the FBI digs up something. The Dems are spending too much time talking about the smoke and the Republicans are worried almost solely about the leaks. Terrific!

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:03 pm

Repubs think if they keep pushing the leak portion, people will forget about the whole Russian part. Sadly it does work with a lot of people, but I don't think that's going to distract the FBI.

Posting Clinton did it too on twitter is fantastic too. I wish I had a time machine so I could find out how this all ends now.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:16 pm

Hang onto your hats, folks. We are in for a major tweet storm tonight!

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:18 pm

In between dodging the FBI and blaming everyone for everything he takes out the time to tweet about his kid expecting a baby.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:27 pm

Priorities. Or something. Meanwhile the Republicans have moved onto - why pick on Michael Flynn. Really? For shame. Also making the case that news is really Fake News. This is ugly.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:30 pm

Because being a tattletale is worse than any other transgression. Every petulant child knows that.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:31 pm

Comey: Yes, we are investigating whether the president's team conspired to commit treason.

Nunes and Gowdy: But leaking it was a crime, right??

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:40 pm

Hearings like this can't shake me of the feeling these guys are just ignoring how they'll go down in history. They are clearly on the losing side and don't know what to do but carry water.

Evan has my back on this one!

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:46 pm

History won't remember any of these individuals - it'll always be "Congress did/did not do X, Y, and Z." Unless one of them gets arrested - then it would get personal.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:53 pm

Holy Shit. That is not what Comey and Rogers said *at all*.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:54 pm

It's gonna be a 12 showers day for Spicer.

I almost feel sorry for the guy.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:54 pm

I expect Spicers head to explode like in scanners in the presser today. Sadly I'm in meetings the rest of the day so I'll miss the fun.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:55 pm

Isgrimnur wrote:Because being a tattletale is worse than any other transgression. Every petulant child knows that.

Snitches get stitches except for Assange.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 1:58 pm

Holman wrote:Holy Shit. That is not what Comey and Rogers said *at all*.

What is amazing is this is likely his true interpretation of what he just saw and not some con. The man lives outside our reality.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 3:48 pm

malchior wrote:
Holman wrote:Holy Shit. That is not what Comey and Rogers said *at all*.
What is amazing is this is likely his true interpretation of what he just saw and not some con. The man lives outside our reality.

He creates his own alternate reality. The baffling thing is that millions of Americans cheerfully join it.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:20 pm

Kraken wrote:The baffling thing is that millions of Americans cheerfully join it.

That's what I don't get. How sphexish we are. It's beyond disheartening. For my ability, it's indescribable.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:49 pm

"Cheerfully" is the operative word. From my Trump-loving associates, it's not a resigned acceptance of his shenanigans. It's gleeful enjoyment of it, as if blatant lying and alternate realities is some hilarious game that has no consequence whatsoever.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:51 pm

hepcat wrote:Hang onto your hats, folks. We are in for a major tweet storm tonight!

Nope, first we have a real live campaign-style rally in Kentucky in support of the Republican healthcare bill.

Since Trump cares about healthcare policy and helping his GOP colleagues a Yuge amount, I predict that he will be disciplined and on-message and will not at all call for anyone to be jailed or murdered.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 4:59 pm

Everyone should take time to watch Rep. Schiff's brief summary of the Trump-Russia narrative.

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:00 pm

To be fair, the rally in itself is not unusual. Obama did quite a few to drum up support of Obamacare.

PLW · Post by **PLW** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:01 pm

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:02 pm

Carpet_pissr wrote:To be fair, the rally in itself is not unusual. Obama did quite a few to drum up support of Obamacare.

Right. I'm sure this was scheduled some time ago. It's just that Trump has... other things on his mind.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:17 pm

Spicer did some very "odd" things today at the daily presser. Suddenly Paul Manafort was only a small part of the campaign - as in campaign manager for Trump for President. Clearly a bit role. And Flynn became just a 'volunteer'. Not his chief national security expert during the campaign and future National Security Adviser. Shit ain't right.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:22 pm

Problem is, this hearing reinforced what was already painfully obvious - the GOP is perfectly content to protect Trump from any real consequences of his Russia connections (and from any consequences generally). Unless some Republicans become suddenly willing to break with this, this will just amount to complaining, and even that will only last until Trump eventually purges the intelligence and law enforcement communities.

GOP senators are probably the only plausible hope on this, and I wouldn't put a lot of money on them.