Some colleges help students scrub their online footprints (FBI is watching).

Buffalo, N.Y. - Samantha Grossman wasn't always thrilled with the impression that emerged when people Googled her name.
"It wasn't anything too horrible," she said. "I just have a common name. There would be pictures, college partying pictures, that weren't of me, things I wouldn't want associated with me."
So before she graduated from Syracuse University last spring, the school provided her with a tool that allowed her to put her best Web foot forward. Now when people Google her, they go straight to a positive image — professional photo, cum laude degree and credentials — that she credits with helping her land a digital advertising job in New York.
"I wanted to make sure people would find the actual me and not these other people," she said.Syracuse, Rochester and Johns Hopkins in Baltimore are among the universities that offer such online tools to their students free of charge, realizing ill-considered Web profiles of drunken frat parties, prank videos and worse can doom graduates to a lifetime of unemployment — even if the pages are somebody else's with the same name.
It's a growing trend based on studies showing that most employers Google prospective hires and nearly all of them won't bother to go past the first page of results. The online tools don't eliminate the embarrassing material; they just put the graduate's most flattering, professional profile front and center.
"These students have been comfortable with the intimate details of their lives on display since birth," said Lisa Severy, president-elect of the National Career Development Association and director of career services at the University of Colorado-Boulder, which does not offer the service.
"The first item on our 'five things to do before you graduate' list is 'clean up your online profile,'" she said. "We call it the grandma test — if you don't want her to see it, you probably don't want an employer to, either."
http://news.yahoo.com/colleges-help-students-scrub-online-footprints-184052483.html

The FBI is monitoring students on campus.

The FBI created the Campus Liaison Initiative "Success through cooperation" in 2008 so that the bureau could partner with institutions of higher learning to combat the threat of international and domestic terrorism.

Whenever I get information or something is posted anonymously on a Web site that may be threatening in nature, I can forward it to [the FBI liaison], and they'll take it from there and follow up with a lot better resources than I could ever get together," Wesleyan University Director of Public Safety Dave Meyer tells Campus Safety.

Although Meyer sings the praises of his local field division in New Haven, Conn., there are other Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF) in the remaining 55 field divisions located throughout the nation that are also eager to partner with the higher education community.

Gant recommends that college and university law enforcement and security departments reach out to their local campus liaisons.

"We want to build a relationship," she says. "You have to remember, there is only one campus liaison agent [per district]. She can only get to so many places, so we ask campus public safety departments to reach out to her."

The FBI also encourages its campus liaisons to attend state, local and regional association meetings when possible. For example, the Connecticut agent will be participating in the Northeast Colleges and Universities Security Association (NECUSA). The FBI liaison will provide an overview of the initiative and be available for questions from attendees.
http://www.campussafetymagazine.com/Channel/University-Security/Articles/2011/02/Fear-Not-the-FBI.aspx 

90 million photographs are being used to create biometric profiles.

Google’s Conversions API is an advertising project that allows corporations to use user profiles to track their consumer habits offline as well as online. C-API will combine real-life data with online user information in order to “bring offline into your online world.”

Tracking consumers by in-store transactions, call-tracking coupled with online activities will be imputed into Google. Marketing will be enhanced with optimized “campaigns based on even more of your business data.”

Servers around the world will track and trace consumers using digital information collected in the real world. Biometrics plays a part in this Big Brother system that justifies this initiative under the guise of marketing; however Google has been under request of the US government for information they have collected on users.

In June, Google admitted they have been told by authorities from various governments, by way of more than 1,000 requests, to remove content from YouTube in the last 6 months of 2011. Google says this is “an alarming trend”. This is an attempt to subvert responsibility from the mega search engine, who works for the National Security Agency (NSA).

Google has “clarified” their statements on tracking consumers on and offline by stating that Google is only allowing advertisers to use data already collected in their marketing campaigns. Google claims not to be actually applying “phone-tracking” data to their searchable digital stores. This back-tracking of their original statements is more telling than the actual statement.

The Department of Defense (DoD) are using biometrics to fight terrorism, catalogue active duty troops and maintain national security interests. The Biometrics Identity Management Agency (BIMA) utilizes biometrics to “identify the enemy” and verify individuals to ensure secure business and governmental functions.

The US Department of State Consular Consolidated Database (CCD) has more than 90 million people’s photographs data based with the continuous use of the Department of Facial Recognition Software. The US Department of Homeland Security Automated Biometric Identification System tracks an estimated 250,000 biometric communications a day. Over 126 million fingerprints, photographs and biographical information are filed for the US government to use at their discretion.
http://occupycorporatism.com/tracking-students-citizens-with-globally-connected-biometric-databases/ 

NCCU terrorist drill under the guise of a terrorist attack, helps to instill fear in our students.

Durham, N.C. -Those living and working near North Carolina Central University might hear some alarming sounds on Thursday, such as gunfire, explosions and emergency sirens. Those sounds, most of which will be simulated, are part of a campus-wide drill.

Operation Eagle Swoop, as it’s being called, allows the university to practice its response in case of a terrorist attack. The scenario will involve multiple shooters, hostage negotiation and rescues with the transport of victims to hospitals. 

Hundreds of people playing the roles of victims will arrive at the school between 7 and 8 a.m. The drill begins at 9 a.m. and will last about five hours.

More than 200 people from 20 different agencies will participate. The drill allows them to get valuable training and a rare chance to work with other agencies and radio frequencies. 

A statement released by the school on Wednesday described the drill as a “full scale terrorist training exercise” which would include “a large volume of emergency vehicles.”

“It will include actors portraying individuals with guns, hostages, and victims,” read the statement.

“The purpose was to test the capabilities and preparedness of our police department and emergency response teams,” said Waters. “It was the biggest drill and most full scale exercise held on a campus in the North Carolina University system.”

School spokesman Robert Waters, however, said he had no knowledge of any life-threatening incidents ever occurring on campus in the historically black university’s 103 year history.
http://www2.nbc17.com/news/durham-county/2013/jan/03/nccu-terrorist-drill-feature-gunfire-explosion-sir-ar-2905351/ 
http://www.campusreform.org/blog/?ID=4559

College and University presidents demand stricter nationwide gun control laws both on and off campus.

More than 300 college and university presidents have signed an online letter demanding stricter nationwide gun control laws both on and off campus.

The letter, signed by the heads of both private and public institutions, demands legislators quickly reinstate a ban on semi-automatic assault weapons, oppose legislation allowing guns on college campuses, and require additional safety standards for guns.

“As educators and parents, we come together to ask our elected representatives to act collectively on behalf of our children by enacting rational gun safety measures,” the letter reads.

The effort is being lead by Oglethorpe University President Lawrence Schall and Agnes Scott College President Elizabeth Kiss who have formed an organization called College Presidents for Gun Safety.

Students for Concealed Carry (SCC), a national organization promoting legislation to allow students to carry guns on campus, responded to the letter on their Facebook page.

“SCC has always respected the rights of private colleges to set their rules, but we’re puzzled why they appeal to the president, who cannot affect state-level concealed carry regulations,” posted SCC.
http://www.campusreform.org/blog/?ID=4555