Security & Intelligence

(Newser) - Rioters might finally have met their match: Taser International is rolling out a “peel and stick” film to electrify cops' shields—so they won’t even have to fire the gun-shaped original to render troublemakers immobile, Wired reports. The product was unveiled at a showcase that also includes shock-inducing bullets and “area denial” zappers. One blogger, er, welcomes “the day of the electric cop.” More »

(Newser) - A cache of computer files found on a dead Colombian guerrilla leader's laptops implicates Hugo Chávez in arms deals with the FARC rebels. The Wall Street Journal reports that Colombian and American intelligence agencies, which came into possession of about 100 files, have no doubt of their authenticity. Both FARC and the Venezuelan president claim that they are counterfeit. More »

(Newser) - A federal judge has ordered the CIA to release a 2002 memo believed to outline interrogation methods that may amount to torture. The ACLU, which brought the suit sparking the order, claims that the memo details harsh interrogation techniques, including waterboarding, and calls it "one of the most important torture documents still being withheld by the Bush administration." The judge will decide whether to make the memo public on Monday, reports Reuters. More »

(Newser) - Facing a lawsuit, the FBI has withdrawn a secret order demanding that an Internet library turn over a user's records—only the third time the bureau has backed down from such a demand, known as a "national security letter." The San Francisco-based Internet Archive, which stores old versions of websites, challenged the order on the grounds that the Patriot Act provision that protects libraries from similar requests should apply online as well. More »