Russian Spy Hoarded Surveillance Gadgets - Boasted: Like James Bond Q

A Russian spy was living in a "typical seaside hotel" on the English coast crammed full of electronic surveillance equipment, a court has heard.

Orlin Roussev boasted to his controller that he was becoming like the James Bond character "Q" as he prepared his spying "toys" for kidnap and surveillance operations across Europe...

The Old Bailey was told a "vast" amount of technical equipment for "intrusive surveillance" was found at Roussev's address in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, which he described in messages as his "Indiana Jones warehouse"... a "significant amount of IT and surveillance equipment". It was stacked up in two storage rooms and an office used by Roussev, the court was told. more

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Senate Reintroduce Bill to Flag Eavesdropping Appliances

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Ranking Member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., along with Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, reintroduced legislation this week that aims to protect Americans from their snooping appliances.

The Informing Consumers About Smart Devices Act would require the Federal Trade Commission to create disclosure guidelines for products that have audio or visual recording components that are not obvious – such as refrigerators, washers, dryers, and dishwashers. more

New Hidden Camera Lawsuit Filed Against Royal Caribbean

A group of 12 cruise ship guests, all US citizens, have filed a new lawsuit against Royal Caribbean over a hidden camera case that saw a crew member jailed for 30 years. Aronfeld Trial Lawyers filed the suit in Miami on behalf of the 12 plaintiffs.

Filipino Arvin Joseph Mirasol, a former stateroom attendant on Symphony of the Seas, was convicted of placing hidden cameras in bathrooms and recording footage earlier this year. He pled guilty to video voyeurism and child abuse material charges.

“The fact that many victims we represent still do not know if and how their images have been used or circulated is incredibly disturbing. Some of the plaintiffs are children – and once an image is on the internet it is there forever,” said attorney Spencer Aronfeld who is handling the new complaint. more

Split Among U.S. Spy Agencies Over 'Havana syndrome'

The White House said the new findings reflect “a shift in key judgements,” calling for more research into injuries to American diplomats and intelligence officers stationed overseas.

A split has emerged among U.S. intelligence agencies over whether a foreign adversary may have been responsible for unexplained “Havana syndrome” injuries to American diplomats and intelligence officers stationed overseas.

A U.S. intelligence assessment released Friday revealed that two of seven spy agencies now say a foreign actor may have developed or deployed a weapon that caused the mysterious health incidents. Officials declined to reveal which intelligence services had shifted their view of the injuries, which first emerged in Havana, Cuba.

Five of seven intelligence agencies or departments echoed findings from 2023 and concluded that it was “very unlikely” that a foreign actor caused the medical symptoms that include vertigo, hearing loss, intense headaches, pain in the ears and blurred vision. Their conclusions were based in part on “sensitive intelligence reporting continuing to point away from foreign involvement,” according to the assessment. more

9th Circ. Upholds Ore. Ban On Secret Audio Recordings

A split en banc Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday upheld as constitutional an Oregon law prohibiting secret audio recordings of people's conversations, ruling in a published opinion that the statute was narrowly tailored to Oregon's significant interest in ensuring its residents know when their conversations are recorded, even in public. more

Someone Likely Used a Sophisticated Phone-Spying Device at the 2024 DNC

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has come to the conclusion that someone likely deployed a mobile phone surveillance system during the Democratic National Convention last summer, according to a new report from Wired. 

Evidence for that assertion comes from Cooper Quintin, a senior technologist at EFF, who has spent time investigating whether police technologies were deployed during the event from the event. Wired worked together with the EFF to conduct an analysis of wireless signal data. What they found was evidence that someone may have used a cell-site simulator to spy on devices. more

Swiss National Accused of Spying Died by Suicide in Iranian Prison

A Swiss national who was arrested and accused of spying in Iran died by suicide in prison on Thursday (Friday AEST), according to Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran's judiciary.

"All evidence and documents from the place where this person was being held have been reviewed, and according to the documents, it is clear that he committed suicide," the chief justice of Iran's Semnan province said, as cited by Mizan Online.

This Swiss citizen's case, whose identity has not been disclosed, "was being reviewed and processed" after he was arrested for espionage, according to Mizan Online. more

The National Museum of Eavesdropping

The national museum of eavesdropping "House with Leaves" in Tirana, Albania has published statistics on visitation during 2024, from which it appears that there was an increase of 58 percent of visitors, compared to 2023.

"During the year 2024, the Museum of Eavesdropping was visited by 77 people. The increase in visitation has consequently also brought an increase in income...

The National Wiretapping Museum was opened on May 23, 2017. It is one of the most special in Albania, which tries to tell young people and foreigners one of the darkest periods of the country's history, being the Central Headquarters of Service Wiretapping Secret, from 1944 – 1991. more

But not all eavesdropping is what it appears to be... MU researcher eavesdrops on bugs more