Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe “signed into law the controversial Interception of Communications Bill, which gives his government the authority to eavesdrop on phone and Internet communications and read physical mail.” In order to defend the law, which has been called “the dictator’s tool kit,” Mugabe’s spokesperson pointed to President Bush’s wiretapping program:
Communications Minister Christopher Mushowe said Zimbabwe is not unique in the world in passing such legislation, citing electronic eavesdropping programs in the United States, the United Kingdom and South Africa, among other countries. (more)
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Outsourcer'er Outwitted ...or, Harry Pottersfield for the spy who billed me
(Cautionary Tale - Spies need to protect their information. You should too.)
UK - A major security alert has been sparked after the theft of a computer database containing thousands of top secret telephone records from police investigations into terrorism and organised crime.
Worried police chiefs throughout the UK launched a massive inquiry into the removal of the sophisticated computer and other IT equipment from a private firm specialising in gathering evidence from mobile phone calls made by suspects. (more)
UK - A major security alert has been sparked after the theft of a computer database containing thousands of top secret telephone records from police investigations into terrorism and organised crime.
Worried police chiefs throughout the UK launched a massive inquiry into the removal of the sophisticated computer and other IT equipment from a private firm specialising in gathering evidence from mobile phone calls made by suspects. (more)
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Unveiling Mata Hari: Dancer, Sexpot, Desperate Housewife, Spy
Mata Hari had a weakness for officers, and it didn't much matter which side they were on. In 1917 the exotic dancer who delighted audiences by wearing very little was convicted of espionage by the French government and brought before a firing squad at the age of 41. Was she really the conniving femme fatale French authorities said handed over state secrets to the Germans, leading to the deaths of 50,000 Frenchmen? Pat Shipman sets out to answer that question in her engrossing "Femme Fatale: Love, Lies and the Unknown Life of Mata Hari." (more)
Spying on Others Evolves
Deric Bownd pointed us to an excellent article on why spying is an innate urge in humans, and animals.The power of a pair of eyes is strong. Eyes - even ones carved in wood or drawn on paper - can force subtle changes in behavior. This is why totem poles and Nazar Boncuk's work. Hiding eyes can also provide a feeling of protection; the primary purpose of masks and often the primary purpose of sunglasses. Fascinating, as eyes often are. (more)
Sacre Yourself Into a Bug Sweep Program
"My name is Daniel Harrison. I’ve spent a number of years in the security and surveillance industry, as a consumer, surveillance gadget designer, and as a product supplier.
My experience has shown me that it is very difficult for customers in the security and surveillance industry to find what they are looking for.
Spy Review provides information, reviews and advice relating to the security industry. I hope you enjoy the site!" (more)
Dan runs a great site for keeping up on cool spy equipment available to everyone. This should scare you into checking for bugs periodically. Call us. We can help.
My experience has shown me that it is very difficult for customers in the security and surveillance industry to find what they are looking for.
Spy Review provides information, reviews and advice relating to the security industry. I hope you enjoy the site!" (more)
Dan runs a great site for keeping up on cool spy equipment available to everyone. This should scare you into checking for bugs periodically. Call us. We can help.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Mr. Woo and his Robots - WooHoo!
How can a man with no formal robotic education create funny and awesome robots out of electronic parts he finds in the junk heap? Mr. Woo found a way, and created so many robots his wife has threatened to leave him (partially because he burned the house down in doing so).
Among the more impressive ones are an actual working rickshaw robot that takes him and the wife to town (no idea how it's powered), along with a junior rickshaw robot that takes the kid to town as well. (more)
Among the more impressive ones are an actual working rickshaw robot that takes him and the wife to town (no idea how it's powered), along with a junior rickshaw robot that takes the kid to town as well. (more)
Email security has been around forever, you just need to turn it on
The most likely way to get eavesdropped on is in the last 100 feet whether that’s through a wire (through layer 2 hijacking) or wireless LAN connection. To enable Server to Client encryption, you simply check a simple option to enable SSL and... (more)
Trial date slated in alleged police eavesdropping case
A December trial date has been set in the illegal-eavesdropping case against former Lafayette Police Chief Randy Hundley.
Hundley and three other officers - all of whom have left the department - were indicted in June 2006 in an investigation of secretly recorded conversations at the desk of the chief’s secretary. (more)
Hundley and three other officers - all of whom have left the department - were indicted in June 2006 in an investigation of secretly recorded conversations at the desk of the chief’s secretary. (more)
Wi-Fi eavesdropping persists despite stronger security
Computer security experts don't appear to be gaining ground on electronic eavesdroppers in the battle to safeguard wireless Internet connections, the head of Harvard University's network operations told a nationwide legislative conference Tuesday.
That means investment in public Wi-Fi projects could end up putting masses of sensitive data such as credit card numbers in the wrong hands if public users aren't educated about the risks of using such networks.
"It's extremely convenient, but it's inherently insecure," Harvard's Jay Tumas told state government information technology specialists at a National Conference of State Legislatures session on Wi-Fi risks. (more)
We have tools which discover corporate wireless LAN hacking. Call us to schedule an inspection.
That means investment in public Wi-Fi projects could end up putting masses of sensitive data such as credit card numbers in the wrong hands if public users aren't educated about the risks of using such networks.
"It's extremely convenient, but it's inherently insecure," Harvard's Jay Tumas told state government information technology specialists at a National Conference of State Legislatures session on Wi-Fi risks. (more)
We have tools which discover corporate wireless LAN hacking. Call us to schedule an inspection.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
India Outsources - Parental Responsibility
India - Many prestigious public schools of the city are hiring detectives to spy on their students, if private detective agencies are to be believed.
According to these agencies, the schools want them to track the movements of the students whom they suspect of indulging in ‘undesirable’ activities. These students are the ones who are irregular at school and often reach home late after school.
Have they found anything amiss about the conduct of the students? "On tracking the movements of suspect students, we found that students who told their parents they were at their friends’ place were actually freaking out at bars, pubs and cinema halls," says Ashish Mathur of Trident Investigation Network. (more)
According to these agencies, the schools want them to track the movements of the students whom they suspect of indulging in ‘undesirable’ activities. These students are the ones who are irregular at school and often reach home late after school.
Have they found anything amiss about the conduct of the students? "On tracking the movements of suspect students, we found that students who told their parents they were at their friends’ place were actually freaking out at bars, pubs and cinema halls," says Ashish Mathur of Trident Investigation Network. (more)
Marital E-mail Snooping Lawsuit
NH - Timothy Quick has sued his estranged wife, Cynthia Quick, claiming she violated federal wiretap laws by sneaking into his online e-mail account.
The lawsuit charges that Cynthia Quick, or someone acting on her behalf, somehow “surreptitiously and without authorization” got the password and access to Timothy Quick’s America Online e-mail account. (more) (the lawsuit)
The lawsuit charges that Cynthia Quick, or someone acting on her behalf, somehow “surreptitiously and without authorization” got the password and access to Timothy Quick’s America Online e-mail account. (more) (the lawsuit)
SpyCam Story #370
A woman fled the DEFCON conference after being identified in front of hundreds of other attendees as an undercover television reporter on a crusade to expose collusion between cyber criminals and federal agents.
Organizers were able to confirm that the woman had a camera in a small black bag that allowed her to surreptitiously video tape people attending the show. She hoped to tape people admitting to breaking the law and then attempt to tie them to federal agents who also attended the show. At one point, she was observed panning a room with her hidden camera.
The woman was identified as Michelle Madigan, an associate producer for Dateline NBC. (more)
Organizers were able to confirm that the woman had a camera in a small black bag that allowed her to surreptitiously video tape people attending the show. She hoped to tape people admitting to breaking the law and then attempt to tie them to federal agents who also attended the show. At one point, she was observed panning a room with her hidden camera.
The woman was identified as Michelle Madigan, an associate producer for Dateline NBC. (more)
"Liar, liar..."
FL - The Orlando Fire Department is investigating allegations that one of the department's top administrators and another chief in charge of internal affairs cheated on a promotional exam five years ago.
The evidence includes an audio recording containing an alleged conversation among as many as four firefighters secretly listening in while a colleague took a test they would be given the next day. ...
Internal-affairs manager Dwain Rivers concluded that eavesdropping on the test would not violate the law... (wrongo - Fla. Stat. ch. 934.03: All parties must consent to the recording or the disclosure of the contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication in Florida. And if all did consent, wouldn't fraud and conspiracy come to mind?) (more)
The evidence includes an audio recording containing an alleged conversation among as many as four firefighters secretly listening in while a colleague took a test they would be given the next day. ...
Internal-affairs manager Dwain Rivers concluded that eavesdropping on the test would not violate the law... (wrongo - Fla. Stat. ch. 934.03: All parties must consent to the recording or the disclosure of the contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication in Florida. And if all did consent, wouldn't fraud and conspiracy come to mind?) (more)
Spy vs. Spy
President Bush has signed into law a bill that gives the U.S. government more power to eavesdrop on suspected foreign terrorists. (more)
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has signed into law controversial new bugging regulations. The Interceptions of Communications Act allows state agents to monitor telephones, as well as private e-mails and post. (more)
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has signed into law controversial new bugging regulations. The Interceptions of Communications Act allows state agents to monitor telephones, as well as private e-mails and post. (more)
A Modern Morton's Fork Decided
Editorial excerpts regarding the new U.S. law which expands government's authority to eavesdrop.
"I’d Rather Be Spied on Than Dead or Out of Work" ~ Denny Hatch
"I haven’t asked anyone to spy on me. Yet know I am being spied on—by government, by business, by marketers—and were I holding down a real job in a real office, my employer would be spying on me. And I am glad of it. Quite simply, we are all being spied on. Get used to it.
...if mining my data, surveillance of my phone records, monitoring my Web activities and tracking my movements with spy cams will keep me safe, so be it."
(Cautionary Tale Alert)
"...A number of years ago, I made a speech to the Canadian Direct Marketing Association in Ottawa. That morning, the daily paper reported that the Bureau of Fisheries required a massive overhaul of its phone system due to a dramatic increase in traffic. In light of the wild over-fishing that had sent the Canadian fishing industry into the tank, the minister looked into why in the world additional phone lines were needed when basically nobody had much to do. It turns out that each of the 10,000 employees was making an average of seven visits a day to Internet porn sites. (P.S., the phone system was not upgraded.)
I don’t cotton to companies spying on their employees. But—when in the office—if they are making seven visits a day to porn sites, freelancing, blogging, updating their Facebook.com page and writing mash notes on company time—or revealing company secrets to competitors—they should be fired.
The compromising of corporate secrets is the most serious; if a competitor gets inside your IT system, learns your plans, finds out your costs and steals your business, you will be toast." (more)
"I’d Rather Be Spied on Than Dead or Out of Work" ~ Denny Hatch
"I haven’t asked anyone to spy on me. Yet know I am being spied on—by government, by business, by marketers—and were I holding down a real job in a real office, my employer would be spying on me. And I am glad of it. Quite simply, we are all being spied on. Get used to it.
...if mining my data, surveillance of my phone records, monitoring my Web activities and tracking my movements with spy cams will keep me safe, so be it."
(Cautionary Tale Alert)
"...A number of years ago, I made a speech to the Canadian Direct Marketing Association in Ottawa. That morning, the daily paper reported that the Bureau of Fisheries required a massive overhaul of its phone system due to a dramatic increase in traffic. In light of the wild over-fishing that had sent the Canadian fishing industry into the tank, the minister looked into why in the world additional phone lines were needed when basically nobody had much to do. It turns out that each of the 10,000 employees was making an average of seven visits a day to Internet porn sites. (P.S., the phone system was not upgraded.)
I don’t cotton to companies spying on their employees. But—when in the office—if they are making seven visits a day to porn sites, freelancing, blogging, updating their Facebook.com page and writing mash notes on company time—or revealing company secrets to competitors—they should be fired.
The compromising of corporate secrets is the most serious; if a competitor gets inside your IT system, learns your plans, finds out your costs and steals your business, you will be toast." (more)
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