67 computers missing from the Los Alamos nuclear weapons lab

[StageLeft]

Link

Granted, these 67 may be a tiny portion of thousands, but

including 13 that were lost or stolen in the past year...including three computers that were taken from a scientist's home in Santa Fe...Only one of the three computers stolen from the employee's home was authorized for home use

It's definitely no problem though because

Officials say no classified information has been lost.

. As if they can possibly say anything different!

 

[blackangst1]

Damn. Potentially scary.

 

[heyheybooboo]

Oops.

It really doesn't matter about the classified information - AQ Khan got off house arrest last week and will gladly fill in the blanks for any terrorist nation of group in need of his professional assistance ...

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
Oops.

It really doesn't matter about the classified information - AQ Khan got off house arrest last week and will gladly fill in the blanks for any terrorist nation of group in need of his professional assistance ...

If ever there were a good case for some wet work, that'd be a fine target.

 

[chess9]

At a time when you need more nuclear power plants, this is not good news. All it will take is one more Chernobyl to put nuclear back another 100 years.

-Robert

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

Well, the ATF has lost several hundred. Along with firearms. Double that of other agencies.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories...onal/main4454380.shtml

Not sensitive as nuclear secrets of course, but still poor oversight.

 

[dahunan]

How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

 

[SAWYER]

And yet people want the government to expand and have more control

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: dahunan
How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

That's a really good idea, actually. Something along those lines, you could even in a highly secure building have something in place like if one's computer stops responding they cannot leave the building until it's back or something along those lines. I'm sure there's some process that could be put in place.

 

[chess9]

Originally posted by: dahunan
How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

Amen!

-Robert

 

[Colt45]

Originally posted by: Skoorb

Originally posted by: dahunan
How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

That's a really good idea, actually. Something along those lines, you could even in a highly secure building have something in place like if one's computer stops responding they cannot leave the building until it's back or something along those lines. I'm sure there's some process that could be put in place.

Could always just have _all_ the storage on a server, thin client like.

 

[EagleKeeper]

And place RFID chips on equipment.

Equipment that is allowed out will be recognized and the exterior doors unlocked for exit.

Those that are not allowed out will be unable to exit through the door.

And equipment can actually be restricted to certain locations withing a compound.

 

[Budmantom]

Originally posted by: Sawyer
And yet democrats want the government to expand and have more control

Fixed

 

[fskimospy]

Originally posted by: Budmantom

Originally posted by: Sawyer
And yet democrats want the government to expand and have more control

Fixed

Guess you've been in a coma for the last eight years.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: Budmantom

Originally posted by: Sawyer
And yet politicians in general want the government to expand and have more control

Fixed

Final fix.

 

[dahunan]

Originally posted by: Budmantom

Originally posted by: Sawyer
And yet democrats want the government to expand and have more control

Fixed

You need help... really... anyone as blindly devoted to one political side is a hinderance to freedom in this country.. and can never consider himself to be devoted to America vs one politicial party

You are like a person devoting himself to a dictatorship

 

[Budmantom]

Originally posted by: Arkaign

Originally posted by: Budmantom

Originally posted by: Sawyer
And yet politicians in general want the government to expand and have more control

Fixed

Final fix.

I have a feeling that the government will grow more in the next four years than it did in the last 4.

 

[f95toli]

Originally posted by: dahunan
How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

Well, the article doesn't say if the missing computers were used in any secret/sensitive work.
I realize that everyone thinks of nuclear weapons when they read about Los Alamos, but in reality that is just a part of what they do. LANL is a national lab (NOT a "nuclear weapons lab") and they work in many different areas of research, most of them non-classified.
I have a friend who works there and his area of expertise is biotech, specifially detecting biological markers used for e.g. diagnosing cancer. His work has nothing whatsoever to do with nuclear weapons (and it is not classified). Moreover, he is not a US citizen (he is Swedish).
Sensitive/secret research is done in special building where the level of security is MUCH higher than in the rest of the lab (and no, my friend is not allowed to enter those buildings).

Anyway, my point is that it is perfecly possible (and in fact likely) that thesse computers were used in work that has absolutely nothing to do with nuclear weapons or national security.

 

[smack Down]

Originally posted by: Common Courtesy
And place RFID chips on equipment.

Equipment that is allowed out will be recognized and the exterior doors unlocked for exit.

Those that are not allowed out will be unable to exit through the door.

And equipment can actually be restricted to certain locations withing a compound.

Great idea lets put a RFID tag on every CD and piece of paper.

 

[novasatori]

Originally posted by: Skoorb

Originally posted by: dahunan
How hard is it to hire competent network administrators and computer security experts for top secret installations /epic failures our overpaid representatives are

If the computer goes down or goes off the net.. security is sent immediately to the node to investigate.. sounds like a good start

That's a really good idea, actually. Something along those lines, you could even in a highly secure building have something in place like if one's computer stops responding they cannot leave the building until it's back or something along those lines. I'm sure there's some process that could be put in place.

Whenever I've been around Classified info it is in huge vaults and if you so much as vibrate the door too hard or turn the combination lock without going to the correct number you will have armed security personnel there within minutes.

All the data inside is hard copy or on a computer that is incapable of being removed.

 

[Modelworks]

Having worked there years ago I can tell you that nothing on the computers inside gets out of the areas marked secret. I worked there as an engineer on the supercomputers interconnects. The computers there are a keyboard, mouse and monitor. There is no access to the computer itself, all are remote terminals, so no way to copy data to cd, dvd, memory stick. The network is all internal with no connection to anything outside the workspace. If you want to access the internet you have to leave the area and use a pc marked for that purpose. Things could be printed out but you were not allowed to carry anything like a briefcase, purse, etc into the workspace. You had to put everything in a locker. Hard drives were shredded, then melted down, and the resulting ingots stored. No joke, I got reprimanded for laughing about that. It was a very well designed system. Some of us sat around in downtime talking about how we would circumvent the system if we had to. We came up with nothing short of putting a gun to someones head and stealing the data.

There are other areas with things like payroll you could probably get out, but things like test results, engineering data, you are not getting out of there.