I think it would be great if you were to include some source links in your petition/email so that folks unaware of the specifics can educate themselves in a non-partisan and factual manner.
Just my $0.02. Cheers, Harry On 6/17/15 8:54 PM, Ronald F. Guilmette wrote: > My apologies in advance to any here who might feel that this is off > topic... I don't personally believe that it is. Frankly, I don't > know of that many mailing lists where the subscribers are likely to > care as much about network security (and/or the lack thereof) as the > membership of this list does. > > By now, most of you will have read about the massive federal data breach > at the U.S. Government's Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and also > the fact that (by OPM's own preliminary estimates) this massive data breach > affects at least four million federal government employees... but perhaps > as many as 14 million current and former employees. However as this > story is still evolving, even as we speak, you may perhaps not be familiar > with the following additional important facts that have just come out: > > *) In addition to ordinary government personel records, including > the usual kinds of frequently-hacked personal information (e.g. > social security numbers), an as-yet undetermined number of highly > detailed 127-page government security clearance forms (SF86) > containing vast and intimate details of virtually every aspect > of the lives of essentially EVERYONE who has applied for or been > granted a government security clearance at any time within THE > PAST 30 YEARS have also been hacked/leaked. > > (Experts seem to agree that this security clearance data constitutes > and absolute gold mine and treasure trove of information for foreign > intelligence services, opening up vast possibilities for phishing, > blackmail, and on and on.) > > *) The Director of the Office of Personnel Management, Ms. > Katherine > Archueta was warned, repeatedly, and over several years, by her > own department's Inspector General (IG) that many of OPM's systems > were insecure and should be taken out of service. Nontheless, as > reveled during congressional testimony yesterday, she overruled > and ignored this advice and kept the systems online. > > Given the above facts, I've just started a new Whitehouse Petition, asking > that the director of OPM, Ms. Archueta, be fired for gross incompetence. > I _do_ understand that the likelihood of anyone ever getting fired for > incompetence anywhere within the Washington D.C. Beltway is very much of > a long shot, based on history, but I nontheless feel that as a U.S. > citizen and taxpayer, I at least want to make my opinion of this matter > known to The Powers That Be. > > I *really* would like some help from members of this list on this endeavor. > In particular, if you agree, I'd appreciate it if you would sign my petition, > and, whether you agree or not, I sure would appreciate it if you would all > share the following URL widely: > > https://petitions.whitehouse.gov//petition/immediately-fire-office-personnel-managements-director-katherine-archueta-gross-incompetence > > Note that Whitehouse petitions do not even get properly or completely > published on the Whitehouse web site until such time as they receive at > least 150 signatures. I am hoping that members of this (NANOG) mailing > list will help me to get past that threshold. > > Thanks for your attention. > > > Regards, > rfg
