This Week in Corporate Espionage News

• Corporate espionage in Canada: how HR leaders can guard against insider threats

• Deel and Rippling corporate espionage case takes a turn as accused ‘spy’ agrees to cooperate

• US is increasingly vulnerable to espionage threats, analysts warn

• Former Spy: Unstoppable AI-Powered Threats Target All

• Russian espionage group focused on corporate espionage, mainly targeting organizations in the US

• North Korea hackers go after business executives in latest info-stealing scheme

• DOGE Purge Is Boosting China’s Espionage Activities Against U.S.

• '$35 million gone in one call': Deepfake fraud rings are fooling the world's smartest firms: Impersonating CEOs for wire fraud to creating fake hostage videos for extortion

This Week in Spy News

• Putin’s Spy Hunters Grab Ukrainian Informants On Mission To Infiltrate Russian Military

• Trump administration is pointing spy satellites at US border

• Your TV is watching you

• Texas AG investigating insurance company accused of spying on lawmakers, journalists, other Texans

• FBI director avoids committing to investigate Signal leak

• Czech Republic blocks Chinese satellite investment over fears of espionage

History: Spies and Informants | A 60 Minutes Marathon

From 2017, Scott Pelley’s interview with an FBI undercover agent who infiltrated Al Qaeda and helped thwart several terrorist attacks. 

From 2011, Anderson Cooper’s report on FBI agent Lin Vecchio, who helped put away several notorious Mafia leaders, but also faced murder charges due to his association with an informant. 

From 2017, Sharyn Alfonsi’s report on the use of jailhouse informants in Orange County, California. 

From 2015, Steve Kroft’s report on Jack Barsky, a KGB spy from the Soviet Union who lived for decades in the United States without being detected. 

From 2019, Pelley’s talk with a former American member of Al-Qaeda who provided valuable intelligence in order to avoid jail. 

From 2001, Lesley Stahl’s report on Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent who was convicted of spying for Russia. 

From 2024, Cecilia Vega’s report on the Americans spying for Cuba in the U.S. 

From 2015, Stahl’s investigation into the controversial use of young confidential informants by law enforcement in dangerous and sometimes deadly drug cases. 

From 2010, Pelley’s report on a Defense Department employee caught on tape selling secrets to a Chinese spy. 

From 2022, Jon Wertheim's story on the Ritchie Boys, the secret U.S. unit bolstered by German-born Jews who helped the Allies beat Hitler. 

From 2018, Cooper’s interview with Justice and FBI officials who reveal how they caught a former CIA officer spying for the Chinese. 

And from 2017, Kroft’s interview with British author John Le Carré who has written several best-selling spy thrillers under the pen name David Cornwell. 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

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.

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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

Recent Spy News

• Colombia Head Coach Accuses Bolivia of Spying Ahead of World Cup Qualifier

• Alleged Iranian spy contacted MI6 to become double agent

• Kanye West sued after ‘spying’ on wife Bianca Censori and Kardashians

• Double Agent Rates 12 Spy Scenes In Movies And TV

• Lebanon arrests 2 foreigners suspected of spying for Israel

• Soldier accused of spying for Iran posed for selfies to disguise handler meeting

• CAA Sues Peter Micelli's Range Media Partners for Spying on 'Confidential' Meeting

• Playtech sues Games Global for IP infringement after spying claims

• Tánaiste 'never told' there was spy in the Oireachtas, Dáil hears

• US Cybersecurity Exec Slams Russian Oligarch Claim

• Germany to beef up security checks amid spying fears

• Russians changing focus from cyberattacks to espionage against Ukraine

• China Detains Four Taiwanese Employees at Apple’s ‘iPhone City’

• Ex-chief of staff to public safety minister denies stalling spy warrant approval

• Philippines: Detained spy holds key

Pakistan's Former Spy Chief Arrested

Pakistan's former spymaster - who was once tipped for the army's top job - has been taken into military custody. 

Lt Gen Faiz Hameed has been accused of abusing his power and raiding a private property development business during his time as head of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency. 

It is incredibly rare for someone of Gen Hameed's rank to be arrested in Pakistan, and has sparked widespread speculation, with many linking the move to his close ties with former prime minister Imran Khan...Gen Hameed could not be reached for comment. more

This Week in Spy News

• Canada women advance in Olympic soccer as emails show their coach supported spying. more

• Like a spy thriller: Amazing details about assassination of Hamas leader Haniyeh in Tehran start to emerge. more

• Moldova expels Russian diplomat and calls in envoy amid spy case. more

• Suspected Russian spy locked up in Brooklyn freed in prisoner swap for Evan Gershovich, Paul Whelan more

• Chinese Woman, 20, Reports Parents To Police After They Install Spy Camera In Her Bedroom more

• Slovenian court convicts two Russians of espionage more

• French citizen accused of espionage in Russia denied bail. more

• The Philippine National Police is looking into the possibility that gadgets seized from a Chinese national were being used for scamming and espionage activities. more  Security Scrapbook Analysis: The equipment appears to have been obtained from pitsms.top, a Chinese manufacturer of a cellular "Fake Base Station" systems. This could be either a cyber-crime story, or a spy story, depending upon the intended use. Stay tuned. We will update you as this develops. You can watch the Fake Base Station being made, here.

Behind the Prisoner Swap: Spies, a Killer, Secret Messages and Unseen Diplomacy

A turning point came on June 25, when a group of C.I.A. officers sat across from their Russian counterparts during a secret meeting in a Middle Eastern capital.

The Americans floated a proposal: an exchange of two dozen prisoners sitting in jails in Russia, the United States and scattered across Europe, a far bigger and more complex deal than either side had previously contemplated but one that would give both Moscow and Western nations more reasons to say yes...

The Russian spies took the proposal back to Moscow, and only days later the C.I.A. director was on the phone with a Russian spy chief agreeing to the broad parameters of a massive prisoner swap. On Thursday, seven different planes touched down in Ankara, Turkey, and exchanged passengers, bringing to a successful close an intensive diplomatic effort that took place almost entirely out of public view. more

Recent Spy Headlines

• Philippines seeks expulsion of Beijing’s diplomats over wiretapping as tensions explode more

• DX Group shares plunge after corporate espionage legal claim more

• Polish defector judge faces espionage charges more

• Russian diplomat to be expelled by UK for spying more
• U.S. Spy Agencies Adopt Rules for Purchasing Commercial Data on Americans more

• Is your car spying on you? more

• Canadian spy agency accuses India of espionage more

• US confronts China over Volt Typhoon cyber espionage more

• Public (in China) urged to be on lookout for marine espionage devices more

• Rival cryptocurrency CEOs courtroom showdown: a tale of innovation, espionage more

• New Book: The Spy Who Came in From the Circus more

• Former Equatorial Guinea Police Commissioner Arrested in Cameroon for Espionage more

• Oleg Gordievsky: the double agent who changed the course of the Cold War more

• China accuses Australia of ‘spying’ after navy flare-up more

• Australian Defence chief rejects China's spying accusation more

• Seeing spies everywhere - Yes the west is paranoid, but that doesn’t mean they’re not out to get us more

...and not to be outdone...
• China sees foreign threats ‘everywhere’ as powerful spy agency takes center stage... In a slick video marking the National Security Education Day, China’s top spy agency has a stern message for Chinese people: foreign spies are everywhere. more video

A Bad Week for Spys

• Beijing accused of using spying, threats and blackmail against Tibetan exiles more

• Turkey says 4 suspects confess to spying on behalf of Mossad more

• Everything wrong with South Africa’s new spying law more

• The body of a former advisor to El Salvador's president showed signs of torture after he died this week while in custody on spying charges. more

• Ireland Refuses New Visa for Russian Diplomats Over Espionage Concerns more

• Accused Russian spy worked for U.K. intelligence, met with prime ministers and princes more

• US Worried About Chinese Smart Cars Spying On Americans more

• Russia jails Ukrainian woman for 10 years for spying more

• A woman who had a six-year relationship with the man of her dreams eventually discovered he was actually an undercover cop spying on her. more

• Lebanese resistance destroys spying equipment in Israeli garrison more

...and in spy movie news... 

• Argylle: A spy martini that's shaken, stirred and somehow still flat. more

• “Argylle” is still out snooping the competition. The spy action comedy remained in first place, raking in $1.96 million on Friday, its second in theaters... So far, the flick, which cost $200 million to make, hasn’t been performing as expected. more

Well, the trailer was fun.

So Much Data Even Spies Are Struggling to Find Secrets

Spying used to be all about secrets. Increasingly, it’s about what’s hiding in plain sight.

A staggering amount of data, from Facebook posts and YouTube clips to location pings from mobile phones and car apps, sits in the open internet, available to anyone who looks. US intelligence agencies have struggled for years to tap into such data, which they refer to as open-source intelligence, or OSINT. But that’s starting to change.

In October the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees all the nation’s intelligence agencies, brought in longtime analyst and cyber expert Jason Barrett to help with the US intelligence community’s approach to OSINT. His immediate task will be to help develop the intelligence community’s national OSINT strategy, which will focus on coordination, data acquisition and the development of tools to improve its approach to this type of intelligence work. ODNI expects to implement the plan in the coming months, according to a spokesperson. more

Recent Spy News

• A Russian man working for a state firm was arrested for allegedly planning to pass sensitive information to Poland in exchange for help in fleeing the country, the security services said Friday. Russian security services have detained a slew of foreigners and its own nationals for working with foreign intelligence since it launched the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022. more

• Algeria caught up in spying drama on the eve of Africa Cup of Nations as police quiz man who flew a DRONE over their training session more

• The sentencing of a US Navy sailor is a window into Chinese espionage. more

• In a decision reflecting rising espionage concerns and a penchant for time-tested technologies, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has chosen to keep alive the chancellery’s vintage pneumatic tube system. 

This unconventional yet highly functional method of document distribution, planned for phase-out by 2025, has been given a new lease of life. more  However: Researchers have found almost a dozen vulnerabilities in a popular brand of pneumatic tube delivery system more  Fun video clip.

• Belarusian Spy-Nude Model Detained in Poland - Polish state security services arrested a Belarusian OnlyFans model for allegedly engaging in espionage – something that she had admitted to friends while drunk. more

• 20 Best Spy Comedies – From 'Austin Powers' to 'Spies Like Us,' Moviefone counts down the 20 best spy comedies of all time. more

Recent Spy News

• Iran is saying it has executed an Israeli Mossad spy in the country’s southeast, state TV reported Saturday. The report said the spy was linked to foreign intelligence services, including Mossad, and charged with involvement in releasing classified information. The judiciary body executed the person in a prison in Zahedan, the capital of the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchistan. The report did not identify the person. more

• Amazon is still selling the clothes hook spy cameras it's being sued over. more  antidote

• German Spy Official Goes on Trial Accused of Selling Secrets to Russia. more

• A top-secret Chinese spy satellite just launched on a supersized rocket. more

• UK spy agency releases annual Christmas puzzle challenge for students: Can you solve it? more

• Man Accused Of Being Spy Admits He’s Russian After Years Posing As Academic In Norway, Canada more

• He’s Wanted for Wirecard’s Missing $2 Billion. He’s Now Suspected of Being a Russian Spy. more

• Ukraine weapons treason case throws light on Russian spy threat to Germany. more

• Former FBI spy hunter sentenced to 4 years for taking money from Putin crony in Russia sanctions case. more

• Congress Clashes Over the Future of America’s Global Spy Program more

• Accused Spy for Cuba Lived the American Dream more

Recent Spy News

Two Palestinians were murdered in the city of Tulkarm and another was murdered in Jenin in the West Bank on Friday under suspicion of spying for Israel... A Palestinian mob can be seen in the videos abusing the bodies and hanging them on an electric pole as crowds surrounded the area, screaming "You traitors!" N12 reported. more

Ukrainian Man Sentenced to 12 Years for Spying for Russia... was found guilty of providing information to the Russian military and sentenced to 12 years in prison, the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) said in a Telegram post. An investigation found the man had sent voice messages to Russian forces in the area with information about the location of Ukrainian military units, equipment, weapons storehouses, military bases and headquarters. more

India... right before he was arrested by Gujarat’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) for allegedly spying for Pakistan, Tarapur-based shopkeeper Labhshankar Maheshwari was in conversation with his neighbours. He was telling them that he would be getting his phone back that day, after a nearly three-month investigation, when an ATS vehicle pulled up... Maheshwari was then arrested for “waging war against the Indian state”. more

India... Two former army officers were convicted and sentenced for jail terms over their collaboration with RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) and other anti-Pakistan actions, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Saturday. According to details, the sentencing came under the Official Secrets Act 1923 and the Army Act 1952 on charges of sedition, working against the interests of national institutions and spying for a foreign agency, as Adil Farooq Raja – who served as major – and Haider Raza Mehdi – a former captain – faced court martial. more

A U.S. court held an extraordinary hearing on November 16th, where a judge carefully considered a lawsuit against the CIA and former CIA director Mike Pompeo for their alleged role in spying on American attorneys and journalists who visited WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. more

South Korea says Russian support likely enabled North Korea to successfully launch a spy satellite. more

Poland said Wednesday it had charged 16 foreign individuals with spying for Russia, for allegedly preparing acts of sabotage and gathering information on military equipment deliveries to Ukraine. more

Two suspects have been detained in Istanbul on suspicion of “military and political espionage” for Israeli intelligence. The suspects contacted Palestinian software engineer Omar A. on the pretext of doing business in Turkiye, it was reported on Thursday. more

A man detained in Latvia on suspicion of spying for Russia has died in detention after developing sudden health problems, prison authorities said. more

WIMBLEDON finalist David Nalbandian is being sued by his model ex-girlfriend for sexual harassment and stalking after allegedly installing hidden cameras in the air conditioning. Araceli Torrado, 29, made the complaint against her former partner Nalbandian, 41, accompanying it with a video in which she discovers a camera allegedly set up by the Argentinian... The installation of the camera - which a judge ruled was placed there by Nalbandian - is not a crime as the apartment was shared by the couple. more

World Spy News Roundup

PA - A Pittsburgh police commander previously placed on leave while officials investigated allegations he spied on colleagues has retired. Matthew Lackner, who had previously overseen the police bureau’s Zone 2 station in the Hill District, retired Tuesday, according to spokeswoman Cara Cruz. Mr. Lackner was placed on paid administrative leave earlier this month. A police source familiar with the incident said the commander was accused of putting a body-worn camera in an officer’s patrol vehicle to spy on the officer. more

Australia - Robot vacuums don’t just collect dust — they can also collect data of their surroundings, sending it back to external servers, experts at The Australian Information Security Association (AISA) warned on Tuesday. more

China - China restricts foreign travel by bankers, state workers to curb spying... According to two analysts who spoke to the media, the moves reflect President Xi Jinping’s attention to national security in the midst of tense relations with the West. more

CA - The Five Eyes countries' intelligence chiefs came together on Tuesday to accuse China of intellectual property theft and using artificial intelligence for hacking and spying against the nations, in a rare joint statement by the allies. more

TX - It seems everything truly is bigger here in Texas, including the drama of partner snooping and infidelity! Recent data has exposed Texas as one of the leading states where the lines between privacy and suspicion are blurrier than ever. Relationship and sex expert Beth Darling joins the factor to talk about the data. more

USA - Ethical hacker helps prevent a potential espionage disaster for CIA. A glitch on X, formerly known as Twitter, could have opened a can of worms for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had an ethical hacker on the microblogging website not sprung to action. more

Donald Trump is suing a private investigations firm over "shocking and scandalous" claims that he engaged in "perverted sexual acts" in Russia. The former US president is taking legal action against Orbis Business Intelligence, a London-based company co-founded by ex-British spy Christopher Steele, over a dossier containing rumours about him that caused a storm before his 2017 presidential inauguration. more

Survey - 53% of employees in the Middle East, Turkiye, and Africa region fear spying from drones... Corporate spies and hackers use drones to get trade secrets, confidential information, and other sensitive data from corporations and data centers. A drone can carry a device for hacking into corporate networks – for instance, a smartphone, a compact computer (e.g., Raspberry Pi), or a signal interceptor (e.g., Wi-Fi Pineapple [1]), and hackers use these devices to access corporate data and disrupt communications. All wireless communication (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, RFID, etc.) is vulnerable to drone attacks. more

Finland - Dead man's estate and firm fined €5m in shipyard espionage case. A man who worked for the Meyer Turku shipyard copied files from the shipyard and a shipping company onto a hard drive and transferred them to his own consulting firm – but then died while the investigation was underway. more

VA - It could be years before Appian, a software company, sees a dollar of the $2 billion judgment it was awarded last year in a corporate espionage case against rival Pegasystems. more

IN - Parents Attack Little League Umpire after children say he was taking photos of them in bathroom. A Little League umpire is facing charges for allegedly taking photos of children in the bathroom... Deputies in Warrick County said they were called to an area baseball field because of reports that parents were fighting an umpire. Authorities said the parents told them the brawl started because their children came running out of the bathroom screaming that Custer had taken photos of them. more

World Spy News Roundup

Canada Finds Smoking Gun In Nijjar Killing After Spying On India more

5 Bulgarians charged with espionage | Spying for Russia more

EU tells China spy and sanction laws could spook investors more more

10 Underrated Movies Based on Actual Real-Life Spies more

Spies in America who stole and sold U.S. secrets | 60 Minutes YouTube

Hamas Operative Arrested on Suspicion of Spying for Israel, Lebanese Media Report more

An award-winning London beautician accused of spying for Russia told her customers she had no interest in politics. more more

Ethiopian Contractor Charged For Spying In US more U.S. government contractor was charged with delivering national defense information to aid a foreign government. more

Exclusive Interview With Ukraine’s Spy Boss From His D.C. Hotel Room more

The Spy Inside Your Smartphone more

Norway drops spying claims against foreign student, says he's being held now for a 'financial crime' more

World Spy News Roundup

UK - Sunak tackles Chinese premier in person over ‘spy in Parliament’ arrest. At the G20 meeting in India, the PM warned Li Qiang over ‘unacceptable’ meddling in the UK’s democracy. more

Israel - Mossad Reveals New Details About Key Egyptian Spy Who Warned Israel That Yom Kippur War Was Imminent more

Germany - Germany charges intelligence 'mole' with treason in Russia spying case. more

UK - Police probe whether fugitive 'Iranian spy' Daniel Khalife had help from the inside as manhunt for ex-soldier, 21, who 'may have burns on his face' moves to Richmond Park near where his family lived. more

UK - A Chinese spy is alleged to have used LinkedIn to contact thousands of British officials and lure them into handing over state secrets. The Times said that the spy worked for Beijing's Ministry of State Security and used a series of false names. The MI5 has previously warned that spies are using LinkedIn to target those with access to confidential information. more

Sri Lanka - Easter bombings: President orders probe after allegations of spy chief’s complicity
The documentary aired this week featured a political insider who accused Sallay of complicity in the bombings by Islamist extremists at three churches and three hotels, which killed 279 people including 45 foreigners. more

China - China’s new counterespionage law, which has been on the books for just a few months, is moving forward at a pace as Beijing weaponizes its citizens to report on suspected cases of foreign agents and Western spy networks – even offering big cash rewards for successful tips. more

North Korea - Calls failed spy satellite launch ‘the most serious’ shortcoming, vows 2nd launch. more

North Korea - Says its 2nd attempt to launch a spy satellite has failed, vows 3rd try. more

China - Accuses government worker of spying for the CIA in second public espionage claim. more

Canada - Organized cybercrime is set to pose a threat to Canada's national security and economic prosperity over the next two years, a national intelligence agency said on Monday. more

USA - Two California Sailors Arrested on Espionage Charges - One of the sailors is assigned to amphibious warship USS Essex (LHD-2) ship, while the other serves at a construction battalion near Los Angeles, according to the sailors’ bios obtained by USNI News. Machinist’s Mate 3rd Class Jinchao Wei, of Wisconsin, has been assigned to Essex since March 4, 2022 and joined the Navy on July 28, 2021, according to the bio. Wei was indicted on a charge for conspiracy to provide national defense information to a Chinese intelligence officer, according to a news release from the Department of Justice. more

This Week in Spy News Around the World

• 5 suspects detained over alleged espionage for China more
• Ex-Venezuelan spy chief is extradited from Spain to US on drug trafficking charges more
• Nikhil Siddhartha's Spy Movie OTT Release Date/Time on Amazon Prime Video more
• Lookout Discovers Advanced Android Surveillanceware Attributed to China more
• Espionage case: NIA files charge sheet against two including Firozabad youth more

• Russian spy network planned to blow up trains in Poland more

• Chinese man arrested while trying to enter India, cops suspect he's a spy more
And proving once again there is no cure for stupid...
• Alleged classified docs leaker Jack Teixeira argues he should be treated like Trump more