On Q Professional Investigations

A jobless woman who was visiting her husband in hospital ended up stabbing him over suspicions of his extramarital affairs.

This happened on September 22 last year, which was the day he was to be discharged.

The court heard that Quek Chin Fern, 38, visited her husband at Singapore General Hospital, where he had been receiving treatment for acid burn injuries sustained in an earlier assault by three unknown assailants.

During the visit, she raised the issue of his suspected infidelity.

This escalated into an argument.

Quek then took out a knife from her bag and swung it at her husband.

She stabbed him several times on his shoulder, cheek and neck.

A nurse saw him being attacked and alerted security immediately.

Quek’s husband suffered multiple lacerations.

The accused was fined S$4,000.

For voluntarily causing hurt, she could have been jailed up to two years and fined S$5,000. CHANNEL NEWSASIA

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Documents just released by US Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) in response to one of EFF’s Freedom of Information Act requests show that DHS is considering collecting DNA from kids ages 14 and up—and is exploring expanding its regulations to allow collection from kids younger than that.

The proposal appears to be working its way through DHS in the wake of regulations from the Department of Justice that require all federal agencies—including DHS and its components such as ICE—to collect DNA from individuals arrested for federal crimes as well as “from non-United States persons who are detained under the authority of the United States,” whether or not they have been involved in criminal activity. While the law specifically exempts a few classes of “aliens,” the documents we received show DHS may start DNA collection from anyone it fingerprints. Currently, that’s any child over 14 who’s detained, but we also found records that show ICE could lower that age even more.

DHS estimates that as many as 1 million people who are subject to administrative detention or arrest annually could now be subject to DNA collection. But it’s important to note that many of these people are not involved in criminal activity. Collecting DNA from anyone detained by the government for any number of non-criminal reasons—especially juveniles—seems to be yet another step on the slippery slope to collecting DNA from everyone in the United States, no matter their status.

ICE is the first component within DHS to collect DNA under the new DOJ regulations. ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) offices in San Diego, St. Paul, and San Juan, Puerto Rico are part of a 6-month pilot program to test out the new procedures and were set to start collecting DNA around July 2010. After the pilot program, the rest of HSI’s offices (more than 200 throughout the US and abroad) will start collecting DNA and presumably all other DHS components will follow suit shortly thereafter.

When the DOJ expanded its DNA collection regulations in 2009, it specifically required agencies to collect DNA from all populations they fingerprint. DHS regulations allow the agency to collect biometrics from aliens coming into the US who are 14 and older, so DHS can currently collect DNA from kids this age as well. However, the agency may also be considering collecting biometrics from kids younger than 14. A slide presentation from March 2011, titled “Working Group on Expanding the Biometric Age Range” notes that some DHS programs are already collecting biometrics from kids younger than 14 and proposes expanding the age range for more DHS entities (including ICE). Because of the DOJ regulations, this would mean that DHS could collect DNA even from very young kids.

It turns out that DHS is not the first federal or even state agency to collect DNA from juveniles. The records ICE released show that the US Marshals are required to collect DNA from juveniles whenever the Marshals collect fingerprints. And the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) internal regulations make clear that “Both adults and juveniles who are fingerprinted are subject to DNA sample collection.” Its agents may also collect DNA from non-United States persons who are merely detained (not formally arrested). And according to the Council for Responsible Genetics, twenty-eight states already collect DNA from juvenile offenders, as well.

However, a DNA collection program run by DHS feels very different because it could affect so many people who have no involvement with the criminal justice system. EFF has strongly criticized warrantless DNA collection in criminal contexts, as we’ve discussed here, here and here. The DOJ argues that collecting DNA from all people arrested and non-US persons detained will allow it to find and identify more criminals, solve more crimes, and “prevent and deter subsequent criminal conduct.” but it is hard to see how that argument couldn’t be extended to apply with equal force to mandated DNA collection from everyone.

DNA reveals an extraordinary amount of private information about you, including family background, medical history, predisposition for disease, and possibly even behavioral tendencies and sexual orientation. Once the federal government collects a DNA sample—no matter which agency does the collection—the sample is sent to the FBI for storage, and the extracted profile is incorporated into the FBI’s massive CODIS database, which already contains over 10.5 million “offender” profiles. It is next to impossible to have your DNA expunged from the database once it’s already in there, and once it’s in CODIS it is subject to repeated warrantless searches from all levels of state and federal law enforcement.

For the short term, DHS’s DNA collection program may be quite limited. ICE has redacted most concrete information about the timetable for implementation, but it is not clear that DHS has begun collecting any DNA. The documents ICE released indicate some agency infighting between the DOJ (which requires the DNA collection) and DHS (which considers this requirement to be an expensive unfunded mandate), and it is not clear if the two agencies have yet worked this out.

DHS also appears to recognize the political costs of collecting DNA from people outside the criminal justice system. In a March 22, 2010 letter from DHS Secretary Napolitano to Attorney General Holder, Napolitano sought an exemption to DNA collection from juveniles under 18. Hidden text within one of the documents1 recognizes that collecting DNA from juveniles could increase “ICE’s exposure to criticism” and notes:

[t]here is a high likelihood that ICE would face litigation and other opposition from community and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) if ICE were to sample all juvenile detainees.

Further, it appears DHS is trying to avoid publicizing the roll out. Hidden text on another page of the documents notes that “OCR and OPA [ICE's Office of Congressional Relations and Office of Public Affairs] intend to respond to inquiries, rather than making announcements of the DNA sampling pilot program.”

DHS’s stalling is good for privacy in the short run. However, given the hard line the DOJ has taken in past court cases challenging DNA collection, the expansion of DNA collection from an ever-broader array of Americans and immigrants appears imminent.

Follow these link to view documents from ICE:

• ICE DNA Collection Documents – pages 1-92
• ICE DNA Collection Documents – pages 93-201
• ICE DNA Collection Documents – pages 202-297
• ICE DNA Collection Documents – pages 298-353

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A former top CIA covert officer who ran one of the spy agency’s secret domestic networks says there are now more foreign spies on U.S. soil than at the peak of the Cold War. The former officer, Hank Crumpton, who also served as deputy director of the CIA’s Counter-Terrorism Center and led the U.S. response to 9/11, speaks candidly to Lara Logan about his life as a spy on 60Minutes, Sunday, May 13at 7 p.m. ET/PT.

As the chief of the CIA’s National Resources Division, the highly-sensitive, secret domestic operation, he conducted counter-intelligence within the U.S. “If you look at the threat that is imposed upon our nation every day, some of the major nation states — China in particular — [have] very sophisticated intelligence operations, very aggressive operations against the U.S.,” says Crumpton. “I would hazard to guess there are more foreign intelligence officers inside the U.S. working against U.S. interests now than even at the height of the Cold War,” he tells Logan. “It’s a critical issue.”

Also critical in Crumpton’s mind is the danger posed by al Qaeda, especially factions operating in North Africa. “I’m particularly concerned about al Qaeda in Yemen, which is fractured as a nation state,” he says. “The Sahel, if you look at al Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb, they pose a threat, and in Somalia. Those are the places I’d be concerned,” says Crumpton.

Crumpton says al Qaeda could make a comeback in Afghanistan if the U.S. withdraws too quickly. The current situation there reminds him of a “Greek tragedy,” he tells Logan. “You’ve got so many mistakes on the U.S. side, and you’ve got a feckless, corrupt government on the Afghan side. I am really more pessimistic now than I’ve been in a long time,” says Crumpton.

The retired spy also tells Logan about the early months in Afghanistan after 9/11, when the U.S. effort to topple the Taliban was led by the CIA and about how two administrations’ failure to let CIA assets kill Osama bin Laden led to the development of predator drones.

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Say you are exploring interesting places on the Internet and come across a gorgeous destination that you would like to visit sometime in future. The only problem is that the web photograph carries no text caption and you therefore have no clue of the location where that picture was possible taken.
Where was a picture taken?

Sometimes the EXIF data embedded in an image file can help you determine the location but there’s another alternative that is more likely to work.

You probably know that Google offers Similar Image search to help discover images that are visually similar to your source image. The same feature of Google Images can sometimes help you uncover the location of a photograph as well. Here’s how:

Go to images.google.com and drag* any image – either from your desktop or another web page – to the search box (see video for a quick demo).

If that photograph is of some popular destination, Google will mention the possible location of that image above the search results (see screenshot). In all other cases, you will at least know the original source of that image and that could offer enough hints for you to guess the actual location on your own.

[*] IE may not support drag and drop but in that case, you can click the “camera icon” in the Google search box to manually upload a picture to Google Images for analysis.

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An interstate prostitution ring based in Indianapolis that was operated by three brothers – all illegal aliens – has been dismantled and the brothers sentenced, announced Joseph H. Hogsett, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.

This prosecution was the result of an extensive investigation by multiple law enforcement agencies, including: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); FBI; the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department; the Marion County Sheriff’s Department; and the Addison (Ill.) Police Department.

Gregorio Hernandez-Castilla, 34, of Indianapolis, was sentenced May 9 by U.S. District Judge William T. Lawrence to 41 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to operate an interstate prostitution ring with his two brothers.

This follows the sentencing of both Jose Luis Hernandez-Castilla, of Indianapolis, and Norberto Hernandez-Castilla, of Chicago, to 51 months in prison each on similar charges. All three men were illegally residing in the United States.

“For years, this criminal organization moved women like human merchandise all over this city and across the Midwest,” Hogsett said. “I am proud to announce today that we have finalized our effort to completely dismantle this dangerous group, bringing an end to their cycle of exploitation.”

According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gayle L. Helart and Bradley P. Shepard, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Lawrence found in sentencing the Hernandez-Castilla brothers that all three had used force and the threat of force against women involved in their criminal operation in an effort to coerce their continued cooperation.

“Our office has made it a priority to aggressively prosecute individuals who capitalize on the misfortune of others,” Hogsett said. “Through the groundbreaking work of our front-line federal prosecutors, we will continue to pursue and hold accountable those found guilty of such heinous crimes.”

The Hernandez-Castilla criminal organization was headed by the three brothers and had been operating for a number of years in the Indianapolis area, largely under the direction of Jose Luis Hernandez-Castilla. The brothers would acquire women to act as prostitutes, on many occasions smuggling them into the United States from Mexico and Central America. Once here, many were often without a means by which to make money, and thus would engage in prostitution so as to pay off debts they owed the brothers for subsidizing their entry into the country.

In addition, the brothers directed another group of individuals who acted as local managers, running prostitution operations out of apartments and houses located throughout Indianapolis and in surrounding states, including Michigan, Illinois and Ohio. The women engaged in prostitution were rarely allowed to stay in any one location for more than a week, and the operation employed numerous drivers who would transport the women from one site to another on a regular basis.

The organization itself operated almost exclusively within the Hispanic community, advertising its services through the distribution of business cards bearing advertisements and telephone numbers for auto repair or western wear outfitters. These business cards were known within the Hispanic community as contact numbers for arranging appointments with prostitutes.

Each appointment, referred to as a “ticket,” cost between $40 and $50.

In addition to the Hernandez-Castilla brothers, twelve other named defendants are facing charges for their roles in the operation. They include the following individuals, all of whom are illegal aliens and were Indianapolis residents, unless otherwise indicated:

• Elvin Herrera
• Hector Elizalde-Hernandez
• Javier Aguilera-Sanchez (Mich.)
• Fredy Arnulfo Valle-Soto
• Jose Mejia
• Reynel Lagos-Martinez (Ohio)
• Dominga Polanco
• Israel Ortiz
• Jorge Armando Rodriguez-Sanchez
• Julio Aguilar-Rodriguez *
• Fortino Ramirez-Fernandez *
• Santos Nunez *

*Note: Julio Aguilar-Rodriguez has a change-of-plea and sentencing hearing scheduled for May 30, 2012. Fortino Ramirez-Fernandez and Santos Nunez remain fugitives at this time.

A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

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Arrests were made May 3 in connection with the largest theft of pharmaceutical products in the history of Connecticut, according to law enforcement officials.

A pair of brothers, Amaury and Amed Villa, were arrested in Florida yesterday on charges they stole roughly $80 million in pharmaceutical products from an Eli Lilly warehouse in Enfield, Conn., in March 2010. The subsequent investigation involved the FBI, local Enfield Police Department and Eli Lilly’s global security department. “As a result of their efforts, and our counterparts in Florida and across the country, we believe that a prolific cargo theft ring has been dismantled,” David Fein, the U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, said in a statement.

According to the indictment, the Villa brothers, who are Cuban citizens living in Miami, broke into the Eli Lilly warehouse on the night of March 13, 2010, using equipment purchased at a Home Depot to cut a hole in the warehouse’s roof. They are accused of disabling parts of the ADT security system that protected the facility before using a forklift inside the warehouse to load several boxes of Zyprexa, Prozac and Gemzar into a rented tractor trailer. Amed Villa’s fingerprints were found on a water bottle within the warehouse, according to the indictment.

In Connecticut, Amaury and Amed Villa are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit theft from an interstate shipment, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years, and four counts of theft from an interstate shipment, each of which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

Following the theft, Bob Reilley, Eli Lilly’s director of global security, reviewed the event and security flaws that led to its initial success. He and his team shared lessons learned about warehouse security, multiple entry threats, visitor controls, alarm response controls, among others, with 25 pharmaceutical companies and others concerned with supply chain security, according to the company.

The company also began lobbying for stiffer penalties for those caught stealing pharmaceutical products. “Right now, there’s no distinction in penalty between the theft of a load tires and the theft of a load of medical products,” Reilley said. Because of the threat to patients’ safety, “the penalty should be much greater” for medical products, he said.

In 2011, Eli Lilly became an early member of the Coalition for Patient Safety and Medicine Integrity, along with six other pharmaceutical companies. Two primary goals of the coalition are to protect patients from risks posed by stolen and inappropriately handled medical products that enter legitimate distribution channels and increase the associated federal criminal penalties for crimes involving stolen medical products.

Congress is considering a bill (S. 1002) introduced by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and dubbed the SAFE DOSES Act that would increase penalties for medical product thefts.

The pharmaceutical products stolen by the Villa brothers, despite the passage of more than a year and a half, were recovered in October 2011 from a storage facility in Florida as part of the investigation. Eli Lilly said it plans to destroy the products when they are no longer needed as evidence.

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The Executive Committee of the Illinois House of Representatives took another step toward approving a bill that would block construction of a privately run immigration detention center 60 kilometers (37 miles) south of Chicago.

The panel supported SB 1064 by a vote of 7-4, a key step toward bringing the measure to the House floor.

The bill already passed the Senate.

SB 1064 would prohibit the state, counties and municipalities of Illinois from hiring private firms to administer detention centers.

The bill would also complement legislation that has been on the books for 20 years in Illinois that establishes that managing the imprisonment of people for crimes is a function that can only be carried out by the government.

The future law would extend that policy to civil detention centers, as the centers are called that are used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to house undocumented immigrants while they await deportation.

The law is aimed at a contract that is being negotiated between the Corrections Corporation of America and the municipality of Crete, in Will County, to build and manage a center to house 788 ICE detainees.

The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights on Wednesday applauded the vote of the Executive Committee and said that it would send “a clear message to CCA” and other private companies that administer detention facilities.

“These companies are not welcome in Illinois,” said ICIRR in a communique

According to ICIRR, CCA is the “nation’s largest and most notorious private prison operator” and has a “long record” of neglect, abuse and mistreatment of detainees.

It says that at least 24 undocumented immigrants died due to lack of medical care in facilities administered by CCA, which last year settled out of court a lawsuit alleging that a prison in Idaho had a “gladiator school” that used violence and intimidation to control the inmates.

The ICIRR says that the commission’s vote was “a clear victory” for Crete and the residents of Illinois, but the bill still needs the approval of the lower house.

The ICIRR, which says that the Crete detention center is one of several that ICE plans to build around the country, urged Illinois lawmakers to approve SB 1064 and to come out publicly against the privatization of immigration detention centers.

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Divorce is a trying situation, and many people focus on the day everything is final and it’s time to start a new chapter in life. You might also find you’re ready to date and want to start the search for the right person to share your life with. Life doesn’t always follow a strict timeline, so what happens if you’re ready to date before your divorce is final?

Think carefully about how to manage the overlap between your pre- and post-divorce worlds, and how dating during your divorce could complicate getting on with your life.

Divorce Issues and Your New Relationship

Dating before your divorce is final could create or at least complicate issues in your divorce case. Your divorce lawyer can best guide you on the issue of whether or not dating presents possible legal problems.

Dating, Adultery and Your Divorce

In most states, the law allows you to seek a divorce either on fault-based grounds, meaning one spouse’s misconduct or wrongdoing is the reason for the divorce, or a no-fault divorce. Examples of fault-based grounds are adultery, desertion or cruelty.

In many states, dating before your divorce is final could fall within the legal definition of adultery. If you’re dating while still married, it’s possible that your spouse could raise the issue of adultery, complicating your case.

Spousal Support and Property Settlements

Depending on state law and the facts of your case, a new relationship could affect decisions in your divorce on spousal support and property division. In some states, a person’s misconduct, such as adultery, can impact these issues.

Living with a new partner could raise issues in your divorce. Your spouse might argue your expenses are less, and it should be a factor in deciding spousal support and property division. Keep in mind once your divorce is final, modifying support can be difficult.

Child Custody and Visitation Issues

Take care and use consideration when it comes to your children and dating during your divorce. Divorce is a major change in your children’s lives, so helping them cope while providing support and stability is important.

Think about how you want to introduce your children to the person you’re dating. Many people opt for slow introductions and integration. There’s no set timeline to follow, though, and everyone is different.

Your new relationship could be a factor if child custody and visitation issues aren’t yet settled in your divorce. A child’s best interests is the typical standard used in determining these issues. It’s aimed at securing your child’s well-being. A court could consider:

• The level of involvement your children have with the person you’re dating
• Whether or not your new boyfriend or girlfriend poses any danger to your children
• Whether or not living with your boyfriend or girlfriend is in your child’s best interests

Your divorce lawyer can best help you assess your situation, as courts have considerable leeway in deciding these issues.

Remember that divorce is a stressful and emotional situation for all involved. Keep dating from becoming an issue in your divorce, and avoid added conflict, time and costs. With your case completed sooner, rather than later, you’ll be free to move on with your life and your new relationship.

Questions for Your Attorney

• Can my spouse change our no-fault divorce to one based on grounds of adultery if I date before the divorce is final?
• Can my spouse raise child custody issues in our divorce if I’m dating but haven’t introduced my new boyfriend to the children?
• I am building a new social life, and I think my spouse is making our divorce more complicated out of resentment. Can I do anything about it?

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A top British codebreaker who died a mysterious death in his flat two years ago had just returned from a computer security conference in the United States before his death, according to information disclosed during an inquest this week.

The body of Gareth Williams, a codebreaker with Britain’s MI6 spy agency, was discovered stuffed into a sports bag in his bathtub on Aug. 23, 2010, though he’s believed to have been killed Aug. 15.

Williams had just returned to London on Aug. 11 after spending six weeks in the United States, where he attended the annual Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas as part of a contingent of British spies, according to witnesses who spoke at the inquest. He attended Black Hat in 2008 as well.

It’s believed Williams may have also attended Black Hat’s companion hacker conference, DefCon, which follows Black Hat and draws many of the same attendees. In 2010, Black Hat was held July 24 to 29, while DefCon ran from July 30 to Aug. 1.

Black Hat is one of the top security conferences in the world, targeting the professional security crowd, while DefCon is geared more specifically to hackers. Law enforcement agents, the military and undercover spies regularly attend both conferences — often undercover — to keep pace with the latest research and learn what hackers are up to. They also recruit hackers for professional work.

DefCon holds an annual spot-the-fed contest to out undercover agents as a good-natured sport. Attendees who spot a fed receive an “I spotted a Fed” T-shirt, while the outed agent gets a trophy T-shirt of his own to take back to his office, sporting the phrase “I was spotted at DefCon.”

Not everyone wants to be outed or plays by the conference ground rules for working undercover. Several years ago, undercover agents believed to be working for Israel’s Mossad spy agency were kicked out of the conference after registering as journalists and posing as a French film crew from Canal Plus.

It’s not known specifically why Williams attended Black Hat or if he and his colleagues attended incognito. A Black Hat organizer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Williams, who was 31 when he died, was found inside a North Face nylon sports bag in the bathtub of his apartment. His nude body was in the fetal position, with his arms folded across his chest. The bag was closed with a padlock, and two keys to the padlock were found underneath Williams’ body inside the bag.

His mobile phone and a number of SIM cards were laid out on a table nearby; the phone had been restored to its factory settings. There were no signs of forced entry to the apartment and no signs of a struggle.

Williams was described by those who knew him as a “math genius” who graduated from Bangor University at the age of 17 with a degree in mathematics. He’d begun his university studies while still in secondary school. In 2001 he joined Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), Britain’s listening post, helping to break coded Taliban communications, among other things. He was considered a “world-class intelligence officer” and had won two awards for codebreaking, according to his boss at GCHQ.

In 2009, he was loaned out to MI6, Britain’s foreign intelligence service, for a three-year stint, but asked to be transferred back to GCHQ after a year. He was preparing to move back to his old job around the time he was killed.

Williams had worked in a four-man team as an expert codebreaker and shortly before his death had been in contact with two secret agents working in the field in the U.K., according to testimony at the inquest.

The Daily Mail quoted anonymous sources last year saying that Williams had been working on secret technology to track stolen money being laundered through Britain by Russian mafia. The technology was reportedly designed to allow MI6 agents to follow money from bank accounts in Russia to criminal gangs in Europe via internet and wire transfers.

He also worked on another secretive project to develop devices for stealing data from mobile phones and laptops using wireless technology.

“He was involved in a very sensitive project with the highest security clearance,” the anonymous source told the Daily Mail. “He was not an agent doing surveillance, but was very much part of the team, working on the technology side, devising stuff like software.”

The source indicated that Williams’ work to disrupt the Russian mafia could have put him at risk.

“Some of these powerful criminal networks have links with, and employ, former KGB agents who can track down people like Williams,” the source said.

Williams also had reportedly worked with the NSA and British intelligence to intercept e-mail messages that helped convict would-be bombers in the United Kingdom. He had made repeated visits to the United States to meet with the National Security Agency and worked closely with British and U.S. spy agencies to intercept and examine communications that passed between an al-Qaida official in Pakistan and three men who were convicted in 2009 of plotting to bomb transcontinental flights.

Investigators said during the inquest that there was no evidence Williams was killed as a result of the work he was doing, but they acknowledged that a full investigation had been thwarted by the spy agencies who employed Williams, raising suspicions that the agencies might have been involved in his death or at least know who was responsible for it.

Hours before he died, surveillance cameras captured Williams in London’s Knightsbridge neighborhood while he was shopping at the luxury department store Harrods. Williams was expected at work the next day, but never showed up. MI6 did not report him missing, however, until Aug. 23, at which point his body had decomposed, thwarting attempts to determine the precise cause of death.

The spy agencies also failed to hand over nine thumb drives found in Williams’ locker at work. The drives were released to investigators only this week. Other electronic equipment that Williams used at work was handed over to Scotland Yard investigators four days after Williams’ body was discovered, raising questions about whether they had been cleaned by the spy agencies first.

Family and friends testified that Williams was unhappy with his work environment at MI6 and felt he didn’t fit in with his colleagues. During the inquest, testimony revealed that the coder had conducted unauthorized searches of an MI6 database that could have put him at risk if he was discovered. Investigators said, however, that MI6 was apparently unaware that Williams had conducted the searches.

A coroner said at the inquest that while it appeared unlikely that British spy agencies played a role in the coder’s death, it was still a “legitimate line of inquiry” for the investigation.

Investigators found no fingerprints or any other evidence indicating someone had been with Williams the night he died, or that anyone beyond his family had ever been in his apartment. Investigators said at the inquest that small traces of incomplete DNA had been found on the tiny padlock that had been used to close the bag in which Williams’ body was stuffed. The only other DNA evidence found in the apartment that didn’t belong to Williams or his family was found on a green hand towel in the kitchen.

Authorities plan to take DNA evidence from 50 colleagues who worked with Williams at MI6 to determine if there is a match.

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Facebook estimates that as of December 31, 2011, false or duplicate accounts represented approximately 5-6% of monthly active users, but also stated, “This estimate is based on an internal review of a limited sample of accounts and we apply significant judgment in making this determination, such as identifying names that appear to be fake or other behavior that appears inauthentic to the reviewers. As such, our estimation of false or duplicate accounts may not accurately represent the actual number of such accounts.”

Why would anyone set up a fake Facebook account?

To steal your clients or potential clients. To squat on your name or brand. To post infected links while posing as legitimate individuals or businesses. To offer deals with links to spoofed websites in order to extract credit card numbers. To damage your name or brand. To harass you or someone you know. To co-opt a name or brand that has leverage in order to obtain privileged access.

Social media websites could go a long way in protecting their users by incorporating device reputation management. Rather than relying solely on information provided by a user (who could be an impersonator), device reputation goes deeper, identifying the computer or other devices being used, so that known scammers and spammers are exposed immediately, and potentially threatening accounts are denied and users abused.

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