TSCM News: All Blacks Bugging Case Settled

Australia - Adrian Gard, the security consultant at the centre of the All Blacks bugging case, had his public mischief charge dismissed by a Sydney court on Friday.

Gard was accused of making a false statement to police about a listening device found in the All Blacks’ hotel meeting room before the August 2016 match against Australia in Sydney.

The magistrate was unable to rule out that someone else could have planted the bug.

Gard was found guilty of a second charge relating to carrying out a security operation without a license.

The matter, dubbed “bug-gate”, caused much friction between the Australian and New Zealand Rugby unions when it was revealed last year. more

Moral of the story... This all could have been avoided if the All Blacks spent the money to hire a real, reputable (and licensed) technical security consultant. ~Kevin

A TSCM Cautionary Tale - The All Blacks Affair

Background... A security consultant for the All Blacks rugby team announces he found a bug in a meeting room chair seat cushion. The arrest. And now, the trial...

An upholsterer called as a witness in the All Blacks bugging trial told a Sydney court he didn’t find any evidence of “tampering” or “reupholstering” when he inspected a chair allegedly used to conceal a listening device in the lead up to the Bledisloe Cup.

All Blacks security consultant Adrian Gard has denied making up claims he found the bug concealed in a chair in the All Blacks’ meeting room at the InterContinental Hotel in Double Bay in August 2016.

Mr Gard has pleaded not guilty to making a false representation resulting in a police investigation into the bug...

All Blacks team manager Darren Shand told the court last week Mr Gard on August 15, 2016, showed him two chairs which he claimed had given off abnormal readings during a bug sweep in the meeting room. Mr Shand said he could see what looked like a listening device. more

Why should you care?
• Not all TSCM "experts" are honest. (I'm shocked!)
• Reputation and experience matters.
• Ignore the smooth talk. Check references thoroughly, before letting them in.
~Kevin

This just in... The bugging device found in a chair in the All Blacks' Sydney hotel is sold at a chain of spy stores, a court has heard. Technician Mark Muratore told Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday the FM transmitter powered by a nine-volt battery was sold at the Oz Spy chain of stores and on eBay. Mr Muratore told the court about 80 of the FM transmitter devices, known as the RBFM600, were sold each year on eBay and at Oz Spy for $120 (≈$95 usd) each.

Spycam News: Former NASCAR Driver Sued for Spying on Ex's

Former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and Roush Fenway Racing have been sued by Biffle's ex-wife and her mother for allegedly spying on them inside his home in Mooresville, North Carolina, with hidden cameras.

According to WSOC-TV's Allison Latos, Biffle is alleged to have hidden cameras "inside the house, including in the master bedroom, bathroom and in the guest bedroom where Biffle's former mother-in-law stayed."

The suit reportedly alleges Biffle, 47, spied on his ex-wife and ex-mother-in-law with the hidden cameras and showed the tape around. more

Business Espionage: America's Cup Teams Spy

The definition of a spy is that he or she operates furtively. But there's been no secrecy around the blatant spying of Oracle and Team New Zealand on each other's boats during the five-day America's Cup break.

Both teams have dropped all pretense about their intelligence-gathering ahead of the final resuming in Bermuda this Sunday New Zealand time.

With Peter Burling and the red-hot Kiwis leading 3-0 in the first-to-seven-wins showdown, desperate Oracle spies went about their work today with the subtlety of a sledgehammer...

Team New Zealand has been doing the same thing, assiduously gaining as much information as possible... more

All Black's Bugging Scandal - Update

Australia - The security guard accused of fabricating the All Blacks hotel bugging scandal that rocked last year’s Bledisloe Cup has vehemently denied any wrongdoing saying: “I don’t know anything about this ­stupid bloody bug.”

Gravel-voiced Adrian Gard, 51... was charged with public mischief after a listening device was unearthed in the All Blacks’ team meeting room at the InterContinental in Double Bay...

Gard, who has 31 years’ experience in the security industry, is at the centre of a bizarre cloak and dagger scandal after a device similar to that used by law enforcement and spying agencies was discovered in a routine sweep of the team’s meeting room in August ahead of the clash with Australia. It was reportedly found in the foam of a chair...

Police will allege the security chief, who has protected the All Blacks for more than 10 years, claimed he “found” the device but investigators do not believe it was stuffed in a chair.

Gard, from Brisbane, will face court next month for the offence which relates to providing police with false information carrying a maximum 12-month sentence. more

All Blacks Bugging: Man Charged

A man, understood to be a security consultant for New Zealand's All Blacks rugby team, has been charged over a listening device found in the team's Sydney hotel room during last year's Bledisloe Cup.

The device — described as similar to that used by law enforcement and spy agencies — was found inside a chair during a routine security search of the team's meeting room at the Intercontinental Hotel at Double Bay ahead of a Bledisloe Cup match against Australia last year.

Adrian Gard, 51, is understood to be a consultant for BGI Security which was contracted by the All Blacks during their Bledisloe Cup campaign.

He has been charged with public mischief over the bugging incident. more

Indianapolis Colts App Accused of Eavesdropping

The Indianapolis Colts, mobile developer YinzCam and audio technology company LISNR were named in a class action lawsuit filed Oct. 14 in Pennsylvania

App asking for access.

alleging that features of the team’s official app allowed them to listen in to private conversations without consent.

Plaintiff Alan Rackemann, a citizen of Indiana pursuing punitive and statutory damages, lists San Francisco-based law firm Edelson PC as a member of his legal counsel in the case. The Golden State Warriors’ official team app was the focus of a similar lawsuit filed in August that saw Edelson PC also represent the plaintiff in that case, LaTisha Satchell.

“It’s a lot of things that are fishy,” LISNR CEO and founder Rodney Williams said in response to the allegations. “It’s a little bit of lawyers being opportunistic, and it’s a lot of false allegations and just bad information.” more

Spycam Incident: Coach Resigned - Team Member Confessed - Police TSCM Search

The head coach of South Korea's national team resigned on Wednesday as police investigate allegations that two male swimmers secretly filmed female swimmers after installing a spy camera in their locker room at a training facility in 2013.

Police Search

Ahn Jong-taek, who was named head coach in 2012, felt responsible for what allegedly happened under his watch, but maintained he and other coaches didn't know what went on, said Park Seong-su, an official from the Korean Olympic Committee.

Police in Seoul have been investigating two former national team swimmers over the allegations, and said one of them has admitted installing a camera at the national training facility in Jincheon, central South Korea, and discarding it after footage was taken. more

Rugby Bugging Scandal - CEO - Nieve? Negligent? You Decide...

Australian Rugby Union CEO Bill Pulver says... he’d never previously heard of sports teams sweeping rooms for bugs.

“I’m not going to describe the All Blacks as paranoid, it’s up to them to run their team the way they want to,” Pulver said.

“But I can tell you we don’t sweep rooms.” more

Obviously, if you never check, you'll never know. TSCM inspection sweeps work. Just ask the All Blacks.

Bugging devices 'widespread' According to Prime Minister

NZ - Prime Minister John Key says he too has been bugged, but won't go into specifics about how often that has happened, where it occurred and who might have been responsible.

His comments come as police in Sydney investigate the discovery of a listening device in a hotel meeting room used by the All Blacks.

Example of a digital transmitter.

Mr Key said it had happened to him, but would not give any details, except to say he would only know about a fraction of the times he had been bugged.

"I'm just saying it's not a new concept that people would put in bugging devices ... I'm just saying it's widespread and I think people would be wise to consider those factors." more

When you think about it, we only know about covert bugging, wiretapping and optical surveillance from the failed attempts. 

By definition, all successful eavesdropping is never discovered. (Usually because no one is looking for it.)

This is why smart businesses, like the All Blacks rugby organization, conduct proactive technical surveillance countermeasures inspections (aka TSCM).

If you would like to add TSCM inspections to your security strategy, contact me. I'll recommend a trusted specialist in your area. ~Kevin

TSCM Find: Bug Discovered in Hotel Meeting Room Used by New Zealand Rugby Team

New Zealand Rugby says a Sydney hotel room where the All Blacks held meetings was bugged before their first Bledisloe Cup match against Australia.

The New Zealand Herald reported that a "sophisticated" listening device found on Monday had been hidden in a chair...

The paper reported that hiding the bug "was a highly skilled and meticulous act and whoever put it there would have needed a significant amount of time to have pulled off such an accomplished job".

Indications are that the device was working and would have transmitted conversations about the All Blacks' strategy for Saturday's match. more

The Herald understands the foam of the seat appeared to have been deliberately and carefully cut to make way for the device and then sewn or glued back together to be almost undetectable. more

Tristan Payton: Highly touted wide receiver — and criminal hunter?

That seemed to be the case this week after the Central Florida wide receiver chased down a man accused of filming teenaged girls in a bathroom on campus, CBS Sports reported.

The girls were attending a cheerleading camp Wednesday at UCF's basketball facilities on campus when they saw a phone recording them inside a bathroom stall.

They told their coach and staff members, saw the man with the phone and chased him, with UCF police soon joining the pursuit.

The man, identified as 21-year-old Jonathan J. Hui, evaded police and the staff but was soon caught by Payton, who saw the commotion and joined the chase.

Payton quickly snagged Hui's phone before he could delete any information on it. more

Business Espionage: Former Cardinals Executive Pleads Guilty To Hacking Astros

Chris Correa, the former scouting director of the St. Louis Cardinals, has pleaded guilty to five criminal charges in connection with unauthorized access of the Houston Astros' database.

Correa appeared before a U.S. district court judge in Houston on Friday and had his sentencing hearing scheduled for April 11.

The maximum penalty for each of the five counts, The Houston Chronicle reported, is up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and restitution. more

Business Espionage: Buy Your Batting Average with Blackmail

Former big leaguer Lenny Dykstra admitted to spending "half a million bucks" on private investigators to dig up dirt on umpires during his playing career.

Dykstra says he then used the information not necessarily to bribe umpires, but to intimidate them into giving him favorable calls. "Fear does a lot to a man," he says. Here's the video:


 "Their blood is just as red as ours. Some of them like women, some of them like men, some of them gamble," said Dykstra. He then imagined a scenario in which he asked the umpire if he "covered the spread last night" after a called strike, then the strike zone shrunk to his advantage.

"It wasn't a coincidence that I led the league in walks the next few years," he added. Dykstra led the league with 129 walks in 1993 while with the Phillies. His previous career high was 89 walks, though he missed plenty of time with injuries. Dykstra's walk rate did spike from 1993-94:

Sports TSCM: Manchester United Searched Hotel for Bugging Devices

UK - Manchester United reportedly organised for their hotel to be searched for bugging devices prior to Saturday's match against arch rivals Liverpool...

According to the Manchester Evening News, security men used devices to check a meeting room at the Lowry Hotel before Van Gaal discussed tactics for the game.

The report adds that the Premier League giants have been checking hotels for more than a year after a bugging device was found in a meeting during the 2013-14 season. more

Baseball Eavesdropping - Apparatus for Transmitting Sound from a Baseball Field - US Patent #3045064

Filed June 1, 1959 by James S. Sellers, and granted July 17, 1962, this patent was for a system of hidden microphones, concealed within the bases on a baseball diamond. Apparently, the transmission of foul language was not a consideration.

Click to enlarge.

from the patent...
"It is highly desirable for the spectators at a baseball game to hear what is transpiring on the playing field, such as arguments at the bases between opposing players, and discussions between the umpires and players. By transmitting the sounds from the playing field to the grandstand, the spectators feel that they are taking part in the game. Also, it enables the spectators to judge a play better as they can hear the baseball strike the glove or mitt of a player.

Click to enlarge.

It is an object of my invention to provide apparatus for transmitting sound from a baseball field which is positioned beneath a base on a baseball field and does not interfere in any manner with the playing of the game.

It is a further object of my invention to provide apparatus for transmitting sound from a baseball field in which a resilient pad or support for the base is formed of a greater surface area than the base and has perforations or apertures in the area adjacent the base whereby sound may be transmitted through the perforations to a microphone there beneath.

An additional object of my invention is to provide a rigid support for the resilient pad to which the pad and the base may be secured to retain them in position, and with the rigid support having openings to permit the passage of sound there through to a microphone positioned there beneath." more

Chess Cheat Caught Using Morse Code and Spy Camera

An Italian chess player has been removed from one of Italy’s most prestigious tournaments after allegedly using Morse code and a hidden camera to cheat. 

Arcangelo Ricciardi ranked at 51,366 in world when he entered the International Chess Festival of Imperia in Liguria, Italy and surprised his competitors when he easily escalated to the penultimate round...

Jean Coqueraut, the tournament's referee told La Stampa newspaper: “In chess, performances like that are impossible. I didn’t think he was a genius, I knew he had to be a cheat.”

He was “batting his eyelids in the most unnatural way,” added Mr Coqueraut. “Then I understood it. He was deciphering signals in Morse code.”

Mr Riccardi was forced to pass through a metal detector by the game organisers, revealing a sophisticated pendent hanging round his neck beneath his shirt, according to the Telegraph.

The pendant reportedly contained a small video camera, wires, which attached to his body, and a 4cm box under his arm pit.

To conceal the pendant around his neck, Mr Riccardi drank constantly from a glass of water and wiped his face with a handkerchief, according to Mr Coqueraut.

It is believed the camera was used to transmit the chess game to an accomplice or computer, which then suggested the moves Mr Riccardi should perform next. These moves were allegedly communicated to him through the box under his arm.

Mr Riccardi denies that he cheated and has claimed that the devices were good luck charms, according to reports. more

Report: Colts Still Sweep For Bugging Devices When They Visit Patriots

MA - It appears Peyton Manning left quite the lasting legacy in Indianapolis. Former Colts head coach Tony Dungy caused a major stir Thursday when he admitted Manning used to fear the New England Patriots bugged the visiting locker room at Gillette Stadium and even would go out into the hallway to discuss play-calling.

Manning left Indy in 2011, but apparently the team still takes precautionary measures whenever it comes to Foxboro, according to WTHR.com’s Bob Kravitz. more

What's Dumber than the Coach Spying on his Team?

(Admitting it?)

In Internet lingo, Mike Krzyzewski is actually a "creeper."

The Blue Devils head coach confessed to ESPN.com that he has set up a secret Twitter account so he can monitor what his players are up to.

This was Krzyzewski's response when asked if he's on social media:

"I follow guys. I don't want to be on Twitter because I don't care. I don't want their opinions. I don't need to show that I have X amount of followers. But I follow a lot of people on Twitter, under an alias. I tell my guys, 'I'm following you.' Then if I see something, you text them, you gotta watch. But there are a lot of cool things that they do. I do like that they do it." more

Espionage in the Sports World

A lawsuit accuses a Sporting Innovations co-founder of corporate espionage.

Sporting Innovations, which develops technological applications for professional sports teams and entertainment groups, fired its co-CEO, Asim Pasha, June 16 and then took him to court a day later. The company says he spent the last year there using its resources to prepare the launch of a competing business.

The firm, affiliated with the owners of Major League Soccer's Sporting Kansas City, filed suit June 17 in the U.S. District Court of Western Missouri, accusing Pasha and his son, Zain Pasha, of colluding with a New York company to create a similar enterprise and misappropriating Sporting Innovations' proprietary business information in the process. The 28-page filing also accuses Pasha of running up "tens of thousands" of dollars in charges on company-issued credits cards to fund personal expenses. more