Claim Your Free 2025 Spy Wall Calendar

Key Features of the Shinobi Enterprises 2025 Wall Calendar:
• Facts You Can Use
• Each month features an overview of a recent case of espionage, economic espionage, covert action, or illegal technology export.
• Espionage Tradecraft. Espionage tradecraft is highlighted in each case.

Perfect for your office or home. Just download and print.

Check Before Opening Encrypted Microsoft Word Documents Emailed to You

Threat intelligence analysts have now reported a surge in the activity of the Paper Werewolf cluster, also known as GOFFEE, which uses infected Microsoft Windows Word documents to launch mostly espionage-driven, credential-compromising attacks.

Like so many other attack campaigns, Paper Werewolf uses phishing emails and brand impersonation to distribute its malicious payload. These messages contain an encrypted Microsoft Word document that prompts the recipient to enable macros in order to read it. If they do this, then the content of the document is decrypted, and the malicious program is installed on their device. The threat intelligence analysts said that, in some instances, they observed the use of PowerRAT, a remote access trojan, enabling the attackers to execute commands and carry out reconnaissance. more

Russian Tanker Suspected of Baltic Sea Sabotage was ‘Loaded with Spy Equipment’

A Russia-linked tanker suspected of cutting Baltic Sea cables has been tugged to port amid reports it was loaded with “spy equipment”.

The vessel is said to have been kitted out with special transmitting and receiving devices that monitor all naval activity, according to shipping journal Lloyd’s List citing a source with direct involvement in the ship. ...The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the vessel was loaded with “huge portable suitcases” and “many laptops”... 

Those on board the ship would have been aware of the spying activities but would have been “threatened with their life, so everybody kept quiet”, the source told the journal. more

This Week in Spy News

• US citizen sentenced to 15 years by Moscow court on espionage charges, Russian media says

• A 9th telecoms firm has been hit by a massive Chinese espionage campaign, the White House says

• Aerial and Drone Surveillance: 2024 in Review
  

• EFF Wins Legal Battle Over Police License Plate Reader Data Sharing in 2024

• Documents Found After the Fall of Assad Show Syrian Intelligence Spying on Journalists

• Frying or spying? These air fryers may be harvesting your data, experts say

• At last MI5 sees the funny side of spying

• Chinese spies arrested in California

Officials Deny Approving Sale of Israeli Spyware Firm to US Investors

Officials in the United States and Israel have denied reports their countries had signed off on the sale of Israeli spyware maker Paragon to Florida-based AE Industrial Partners... 

"The U.S. government never 'approved' this sale. This is a private transaction," the official said. "There wasn't some sort of green light given for this sale." The Israeli military also denied the reports... more

How Pigeons, Cats, Whales, Robotic Catfish Acted as Spies

The death of a spy is rarely newsworthy, due to the secrecy surrounding it. But when a white beluga whale suspected of spying for Moscow was found dead in Norwegian waters in September, the animal soon became a minor celebrity....

The US ran similar experiments with animals, some dating back to the 1960s. One of the CIA’s more unusual attempts to use animals as spies was Operation Acoustic Kitty...

The idea was to implant a microphone and antenna into the cat and use it to eavesdrop on potentially interesting conversations. The test of the “prototype” went horribly wrong... more

Smart Home Cameras Spying

According to a study conducted by Surfshark, outdoor security camera apps are some of the top offenders when it comes to collecting user data. These apps gather 12 data points on average, including sensitive details like email addresses, phone numbers, payment information and precise location. That’s 50% more than what other smart home devices typically collect.
Which apps collect the most data?
Among the apps that collect the most data, Deep Sentinel and Lorex stand out for outdoor security cameras, each collecting 18 out of a possible 32 data points. Nest Labs, which leads the pack for indoor cameras, collects 17 data points, with Ring and Arlo each gathering 15. more

The Spy Cam Lunch Box

From our, "You can't make this shxt up," file...

Security Director Alert: Latest Electronic Surveillance of Corporate Executives

What is going on at Boohoo?
• Espionage claims arise as boardroom battle continues.

• Cautionary tale.

The past few months have been turbulent for Boohoo, to say the least. Yet, last week, things seemed to come to a head when claims of espionage arose at the fast fashion giant.

According to a report by The Times, three current and former executives of Boohoo are believed to be the victims of stalking and surveillance. The alleged espionage is said to have been committed against Boohoo’s co-founder and executive chair Mahmud Kamani, chief executive Dan Finley and former CEO, John Lyttle.

The allegations were brought to light after the company informed the Information Commissioner’s Office (IOC) of a related incident taking place outside of its Manchester headquarters. The report was confirmed by the IOC in a statement to the press, which read: “We can confirm that Boohoo Group has made us aware of concerns regarding the discovery of surveillance equipment outside its head office.”

In a more recent update, the Times has now reported that police in Manchester and Kent are investigating the claims, with Greater Manchester Police stating to the media outlet that it was looking into allegations “involving serious distress”. No arrests have been made, so far. more

Spybuster Tip # 675

Prior to any attack (physical, information theft) some form of surveillance tradecraft (audio, video, data or visual surveillance) will be used. 

If you are a business executive don't ignore this. 

More tips here.

TSCM Tech: Another Step Closer to the Holy Grail - Visualizing RF

Holo-Scan: 3D Scanner with Augmented Reality (AR) Headset
The Holo-Scan is a 3D electromagnetic field mapping system in augmented reality (AR) compatible with various laboratory equipment such as spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers (VNA) or specific probes (Narda, Wavecontrol…). Unlimited frequency band depending on the instruments used.  The data is then exported in .lxd format and directly analyzed in the online viewer. more

Looking forward to the day this can be direct coupled to an SDR and my Vision Pro. ~Kevin

Who Needs TSCM... China’s top court vows to combat eavesdropping, illegal recordings...

The Supreme People's Court (SPC) on Wednesday released several cases regarding the prosecution of crimes related to the illegal production, sale, and use of eavesdropping and surreptitious recording equipment, showing a clear stance on cracking down on the underground industrial chain behind such activities.

The SPC revealed that some offenders installed eavesdropping and recording devices in hotels, guesthouses, and other locations to spy on unknowing guests and patrons. In some cases, they provided internet links for others to view these recordings in real time or produced images, audio, and videos for sale and distribution, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Others used such devices for illegal activities such as unauthorized investigations, blackmail, and cheating in gambling, seriously infringing upon people's information security and privacy. Additionally, some offenders had illegally manufactured and sold these devices, fueling their proliferation in society and exacerbating the issue of illegal recording, the SPC said. more

Shocking! One wonders if this will stop the exports, and will there be a run on eBay and amazon spy merch.

Research Finds that Cellular Walkie Talkies Put Americans at Risk of Chinese Spying

Haloid Solutions, a leading provider of wireless communications equipment, is warning all business and government agencies about foreign espionage and business disruption risks from China-manufactured cellular two-way radios. These devices were sold in the United States from "pop up companies" that claimed the devices were private.

For the past year, we've researched and investigated the radio over cellular space, also known as Push-to-Talk Over Cellular, or PoC. We've encountered dozens of "pop up" U.S. companies selling China engineered, manufactured, and hosted devices for extremely low prices.

The devices are advertised as encrypted and marketed and sold to businesses and government agencies. 

We estimate millions of these devices are currently in operation. From our research, we've found that many of these companies' claims are misleading or false. For example, one Chinese manufacturer white labels its products under numerous U.S. names, and claims that the servers hosting its radios are on Amazon servers in the U.S. In reality, they are hosted by Alibaba, the Chinese tech conglomerate and are vulnerable to Chinese spying by sending back user data to China. more

Google Warns Millions Of Android Users—These Apps Are Spying On You

Google is narrowing the gap to iPhone on the security and privacy front with Android 15. A raft of welcome changes will better protect users, their devices and their data, including live threat detection to quickly flag malware and permission abuse, cellular network defense, and tighter controls of what apps are doing behind the scenes.

When we talk about permission abuse, we clearly mean the grey area between apps behaving well and outright spyware—of which there’s still plenty on Android. While Apple led the charge to restrict location tracking and access to sensitive phone functions like messaging, cameras and contacts, Google has followed. more

10 High-Octane Spy Movies That Can Compete With James Bond

Skip the Hallmark Channel this season with this hit list...

10
The Bourne Identity (2002)
The James Bond Franchise's American Twin

9 

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
A Timeless Film With Quieter Thrills

8 

Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
Everything That's Great About James Bond Cranked Up To 11

7 

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
Ethan Hunt Is A Great James Bond Rival

6 

Atomic Blonde (2017)
A Unique Spy Movie That Stands On Its Own Against Hits Like James Bond

5 

Sicario (2015)
Trades The Glamor Of James Bond For A Grim Spy Story

4 

Tenet (2020)
Bond For Physics Enthusiasts

3 

Argo (2012)

2 

Bridge of Spies (2015)

1 

The Hunt for Red October (1990)

Then,  for stress relief...

Top Secret! (1984)

Cautionary Tale for Traveling Executives - A Case of Spy Tradecraft...

A Bulgarian espionage ring working on behalf of Russia in the UK used video-recording spyglasses and honey traps to gather information on journalists and dissidents...

...five Bulgarian nationals who are accused of spying in Britain as part of a ring co-ordinated by Jan Marsalek, the former chief operating officer of Wirecard. 

London’s Old Bailey heard the group targeted journalists Christo Grozev and Roman Dobrokhotov, as well as Kazakh dissident Bergey Ryskaliyev, tracking them variously on flights and across European cities during 2021 and 2022. 

One member of the group, Katrin Ivanova, 33, used specially-designed glasses to record images and videos to watch Grozev on a flight from Vienna to Montenegro in June 2022, prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said. The group had accessed an airline industry database called “Amadeus” through another Bulgarian contact to ascertain the flight details and seat numbers of their targets, the court heard. 

Ivanova also sat nearby Dobrokhotov on a flight in November 2021 and memorised his phone pin code, reporting it back to her handlers, Morgan added. “That was a correct capture and showed the tradecraft of Miss Ivanova,” Morgan told the court. 

The group also discussed bribing hotel staff, employing pickpockets and infiltrating a target’s home by hiring Bulgarian and Romanian cleaning teams, the court heard. more

Bulgarian national Katrin Ivanova (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

and... Russian agent discussed deploying a “true sexy bitch” in a “honeytrap” spy plot against an award-winning journalist, a court has heard...Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC told jurors that, as well as trying to “befriend” Mr Gozev, Gaberova had been engaged in capturing surveillance images of him at the conference...

She said: “These images were extremely important as they showed Christo Grozev together with others of interest to Russia, Eliot Higgins. 

“Roussev would later seek to use face recognition software to check that the image did show Christo Grozev with Higgins together.”...

She showed off her “tradecraft” by relaying images, using covert recording equipment and capturing Mr Dobrokhotov’s iPhone PIN number, Mr Morgan said. more