UT - ...two boys, one a student at Midvale Middle School and another boy also younger than 18, had a plan to “kidnap, torture and kill” at least 3 people, including a fellow student and a school police officer at Midvale Middle School...
...the mother of the older boy called police on March 7th, after eavesdropping on a phone conversation between her son and the younger boy. The mother allegedly heard the boys talk about a plan to kidnap people after luring them to different locations. The court papers say the boys “…wanted to make sure to have cameras and camcorders so they could take pictures of what they were doing, because they wanted people to know who did it, so they could become famous.” (more with video)
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
"So, why did you think we recorded the calls?"
MI - Two sergeants and three deputies are making a federal case out of their problems with Sheriff Michael Oltersdorf, Undersheriff Scott Wooters and the Leelanau County Sheriff’s Department.
In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids last week, the sergeants and deputies are alleging that their civil rights were violated when the sheriff and undersheriff listened to “private” conversations recorded on a computerized phone system in the Leelanau County Law Enforcement Center last year.
Many of the phone conversations were about grievances filed against the sheriff under a Police Officers Association of Michigan (POAM) union contract and issues related to former Deputy Bruce Beeker, who resigned last month. (more)
In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids last week, the sergeants and deputies are alleging that their civil rights were violated when the sheriff and undersheriff listened to “private” conversations recorded on a computerized phone system in the Leelanau County Law Enforcement Center last year.
Many of the phone conversations were about grievances filed against the sheriff under a Police Officers Association of Michigan (POAM) union contract and issues related to former Deputy Bruce Beeker, who resigned last month. (more)
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
SpyCam Story #522 - The Starbuckeroo
NY - Police are looking for a man who installed a spy camera in the unisex bathroom at the Starbucks Coffee Shop in New Paltz. The device was discovered a short time later when an employee located it. It is believed the incident occurred on Tuesday, March 10 at about 7 p.m.
New Paltz Police have recovered video and said the suspect appears to be a white man with a build, 35 to 40 years of age and approximately six feet tall.
He is bearded with a mustache and is wearing wire rimmed circular glasses. He has a pony tail that does down mid-way on his back. The police are asking for public assistance it identifying this man. Anyone with information is asked to call the police at 845-255-1323. All calls will remain confidential and police will also take anonymous tips. (more) (more)
"Signs yer' phone be tapped."
Happy St. Patrick's Day"Is someone listening to your private calls? Know the warning signs." Someone at VoIP-News has had a wee bit too much Guinness. The only thing they didn't mention were the buggin' leprechauns.
Seriously, there is a lot of misinformation on the Internet. If you are concerned about illegal bugging, wiretapping or electronic tracking, please contact a competent counterespionage specialist.
Resources...
Security Director News
Security Management
International Association of Professional Security Consultants
True Stories from Eavesdroppingland - Auto Bug
"I've never asked Dad if he killed Mum."It was Martin's discovery that Maureen had kissed Mr Potter - after bugging her car - that led to him hitting his wife.
Oliver recalls pulling them apart and seeing his mum with a bloody nose. He believes it was the final nail in his parents' 16-year marriage... (more)
Extortionography: Edison Carter's or TVigilantes?
Australia - A former Sydney mayor has told a court he will plead not guilty to soliciting the murder of a male prostitute last year.
The 71-year-old former mayor of Waverley, James Robert Markham, was secretly filmed by Channel Nine's A Current Affair program, allegedly explaining his motives to hire a hitman to carry out the murder...
The alleged hitman, Channel Nine producer Andrew Byrne and reporter Ben Fordham have been charged with breaching the Listening Devices Act. (more)
The 71-year-old former mayor of Waverley, James Robert Markham, was secretly filmed by Channel Nine's A Current Affair program, allegedly explaining his motives to hire a hitman to carry out the murder...
The alleged hitman, Channel Nine producer Andrew Byrne and reporter Ben Fordham have been charged with breaching the Listening Devices Act. (more)
Monday, March 16, 2009
Or, about new 2 wiretaps every business hour.
Bulgaria - Sofia City Court approved requests for about 4000 wiretaps in 2008, the court's head, Svetlin Mihailov, let it be understood on March 16 2009.
Presenting the report on the court's activity in 2008, Mihailov said, as quoted by Dnevnik daily, that the court rejected only 30 requests because they dealt with document fraud, in which there was nothing to be gained by tapping the suspects' phones, he said. (more)
Presenting the report on the court's activity in 2008, Mihailov said, as quoted by Dnevnik daily, that the court rejected only 30 requests because they dealt with document fraud, in which there was nothing to be gained by tapping the suspects' phones, he said. (more)
Got RFID Credit Cards? Wanna Keep Them?
The Only Stainless Steel Wallet.Woven using 25,000 stainless steel threads that are three times thinner than a piece of paper --.001"--this is the only wallet with a hand as smooth as silk and the strength that surpasses leather.
Resistant to corrosive materials such as salts, acids, and seawater, the tightly woven steel also passively resists radio-frequency hacking--the latest identity theft technique that attempts to scan newer credit cards. (more)
More wallet and passport protectors. (more) (more) (more)
County Spends Thousands for Bug Sweep...
By Ray Stern, Phoenix New Times Blog...
Maricopa County Supervisors Spend $14,600 Sweeping for Bugs
It seems like the very definition of paranoia: Spending thousands of dollars sweeping for hidden electronic devices -- and finding none. But that's what Maricopa County Supervisors are doing -- with your money. The county has now spent $14,600 sweeping for bugs on the 10th floor of the county building at 301 West Jefferson Street, and no bugs have been discovered. (more)
Bad press?
Not really, just the usual sensationalized reporting without all the facts.
To an underpaid reporter, $14,600 sounds like a lot of money. Can't blame him for ranting.
HOWEVER, if our reporter dug deeper...
Bug sweeps protect against fraudulent bidding on multi-million dollar county contracts throughout the year. (Just one of many good examples.) Periodic sweeps are cheap insurance and proper due diligence.
Eavesdropping detection audits are a standard practice in business and government. Combined with other professional security measures the proper outcome is "no bugs found." Not conducting eavesdropping detection sweeps may be considered negligence. And that might be the topic of an even better article!
Even the reporter had to admit that my colleague was above reproach...
The county is using Arizona Technical Security, a Scottsdale company. Jeff Evert, the company's owner, told New Times that if the county had hired him to do anything, he wouldn't talk about it. He wouldn't budge even when told we were looking at the bill. At least someone in this world has ethics, right?
Right, and Ray Stern should interview Jeff to learn the value of bug sweeps. And as for Max Wilson, Chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, your taxpayers should be proud of you for properly safeguarding their money. ~Kevin
Maricopa County Supervisors Spend $14,600 Sweeping for Bugs
It seems like the very definition of paranoia: Spending thousands of dollars sweeping for hidden electronic devices -- and finding none. But that's what Maricopa County Supervisors are doing -- with your money. The county has now spent $14,600 sweeping for bugs on the 10th floor of the county building at 301 West Jefferson Street, and no bugs have been discovered. (more)
Bad press?
Not really, just the usual sensationalized reporting without all the facts.
To an underpaid reporter, $14,600 sounds like a lot of money. Can't blame him for ranting.
HOWEVER, if our reporter dug deeper...
Bug sweeps protect against fraudulent bidding on multi-million dollar county contracts throughout the year. (Just one of many good examples.) Periodic sweeps are cheap insurance and proper due diligence.
Eavesdropping detection audits are a standard practice in business and government. Combined with other professional security measures the proper outcome is "no bugs found." Not conducting eavesdropping detection sweeps may be considered negligence. And that might be the topic of an even better article!
Even the reporter had to admit that my colleague was above reproach...
The county is using Arizona Technical Security, a Scottsdale company. Jeff Evert, the company's owner, told New Times that if the county had hired him to do anything, he wouldn't talk about it. He wouldn't budge even when told we were looking at the bill. At least someone in this world has ethics, right?
Right, and Ray Stern should interview Jeff to learn the value of bug sweeps. And as for Max Wilson, Chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, your taxpayers should be proud of you for properly safeguarding their money. ~Kevin
Security Director Alert - Default Admin Codes
David Rusenko sez... Here's a fun little tip: You can open most Sentex key pad-access doors by typing in the following code: ***00000099#* The first *** are to enter into the admin mode, 000000 (six zeroes) is the factory-default password, 99# opens the door, and * exits the admin mode (make sure you press this or the access box will be left in admin mode!)
Important...
Even though you assigned custom passcodes to system users, your system's master code may still be set at the default passcode. This is a vulnerability common to many access control products. Time to check & change.
To see if you have a Sentex lock (mostly used in multi-tenant buildings and for driveway gates) check here and here. ~Kevin
...and I love the smell of my new shoes (BLAMP!)
Finland - The parliament of Finland voted to approve a controversial new law that gives employers the right to monitor their employees’ emails if they suspect any kind of deviant or illegal behaviour is going on. Dubbed the “Lex Nokia” law, or the data retention law, the bill was approved by 96 members of parliament, while 56 voted against it. (more)
Social Networking - Corporate Security Risk
via Forbes...
Social networking already has passed through the firewall of every company on the planet. Now CIOs need to ask, "What else snuck in with it?"
Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace already are a part of employees' lives. They're also one of the greatest tools for hackers to gain entry into the corporate enterprise, no matter how impenetrable a company thinks it is from the bad guys. And it's not just the 20-something employees. With workers of all ages showing growing angst over their jobs, they've been flooding onto LinkedIn to build up their contact lists in case they get laid off.
Top executives at Netragard, which specializes in ethical hacking, claim their team can gain access to any data inside almost any enterprise rather quickly, often in minutes, by latching onto employee names and gaining access through social networking sites. (more)
Social networking already has passed through the firewall of every company on the planet. Now CIOs need to ask, "What else snuck in with it?"
Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace already are a part of employees' lives. They're also one of the greatest tools for hackers to gain entry into the corporate enterprise, no matter how impenetrable a company thinks it is from the bad guys. And it's not just the 20-something employees. With workers of all ages showing growing angst over their jobs, they've been flooding onto LinkedIn to build up their contact lists in case they get laid off.
Top executives at Netragard, which specializes in ethical hacking, claim their team can gain access to any data inside almost any enterprise rather quickly, often in minutes, by latching onto employee names and gaining access through social networking sites. (more)
Saturday, March 14, 2009
...or, $109,589.04 plus flight expenses, per day.
US - The Pentagon said Thursday that it intends to spend $400 million to develop a giant dirigible that will float 65,000 feet above the Earth for 10 years, providing unblinking and intricate radar surveillance of the vehicles, planes and even people below. ”It is absolutely revolutionary,” Werner J.A. Dahm, chief scientist for the Air Force, said of the proposed unmanned airship - describing it as a cross between a satellite and a spy plane. (more)
Friday, March 13, 2009
Spy News - Made in the USA
Here are a few of the stories capturing our attention here...
Industrial Espionage Negates Reinventing the Wheel
• The global security chief for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. revealed an intellectual property theft. Seems a couple of engineers from another tire company tricked their way into Goodyear, distracted their escort, took cell phone photos of special manufacturing equipment and emailed them to their headquarters.
The information was used to make similar machinery for a Chinese tire manufacturer. That contract was worth about $1.2 million.
The alleged spy guys? Wyko Tire Technology Ltd., West Midlands, UK.
Conclusion: No business safe from industrial espionage. The more your information is worth, the more it will be targeted. The method of theft used here was preventable. Good counterespionage consultants know how. All a business has to do is ask.
Boardroom Bug Hides in Plain Sight
• Our spybusters found a Boardroom speakerphone this month which allowed eavesdropping. We routinely check speakerphone feature settings to see if the auto-answer feature is active. If it is, eavesdropping is easy. Simply dial the Boardroom number when it is is vacant, stay on the line and wait for the meeting to begin. This is a surprisingly well-known (and used) eavesdropping trick.
Solutions: Only connect the Boardroom speakerphone to the outside line when it is actually needed. Next best... Deactivate the auto-answer feature permanently. If permanent deactivation is not possible, program it off. Your countermeasures team will re-inspect it for you each visit. You do have a countermeasures team checking your Boardroom, don't you?
Hotels Are Fertile Ground for Voyeurs
• There has been a recent uptick in hotel voyeurism stories here. Most involve spycams, a few about holes poked in walls, and this odd-ball story out of Florida... with implications for travelers everywhere: A husband and wife checked into their hotel room and noticed the peephole in the door had been reversed! People on the outside could clearly see into their room.
Hotel door peepholes are mandated by law in the U.S. This door had two of them; one at regular height, and lower one three feet from the ground (legally compliant for people in wheelchairs). The lower one was reversed.
Hotels in the Hollywood, Florida area cater to young couples visiting on vacation, school breaks and cruise ships. The area is a rich target for pornography manufacturers. It is unlikely this is an isolated incident.
Recommendations: Keep a small, high-power flashlight in your kit and a long pin (for poking into pin-holes, of course). Carefully check your hotel room upon arrival. Start with the peephole. Look into unusual holes, open vents, etc. keeping in mind the field of view from that perspective. Bathrooms and beds are usually the targeted viewing areas. Be aware of electronic items which do not look like standard hotel room items. A clock (or clock radio) which looks too new, for example, could be a spycam. If in doubt, face it toward the wall. "Smoke detectors" in strange places, or too many of them, is another clue there might be a problem. If you think you have found something suspicious, call the police, not the front desk, for further investigation. You want your case well-documented, and the evidence properly handled when you say, "See you in court."
If your business is holding an off-site meeting at a hotel or resort, bring along your countermeasures team. In addition to preventing information losses, they can save you from this type of embarrassment.
Want to Spy on the International Space Station?
Click here. While the crew is working you can eavesdrop on their transmissions - often sporadic - and watch the progress map. During sleep periods, they turn on the outside spycams. Just listening to them now. Interesting. They are housecleaning. Sucking lint out of the ducts with a vacuum cleaner! Houston said, "Glad it is all clean and you didn't see a pair of eyes staring back at you."
From America, this is Kevin.
Industrial Espionage Negates Reinventing the Wheel
• The global security chief for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. revealed an intellectual property theft. Seems a couple of engineers from another tire company tricked their way into Goodyear, distracted their escort, took cell phone photos of special manufacturing equipment and emailed them to their headquarters.
The information was used to make similar machinery for a Chinese tire manufacturer. That contract was worth about $1.2 million.
The alleged spy guys? Wyko Tire Technology Ltd., West Midlands, UK.
Conclusion: No business safe from industrial espionage. The more your information is worth, the more it will be targeted. The method of theft used here was preventable. Good counterespionage consultants know how. All a business has to do is ask.
Boardroom Bug Hides in Plain Sight
• Our spybusters found a Boardroom speakerphone this month which allowed eavesdropping. We routinely check speakerphone feature settings to see if the auto-answer feature is active. If it is, eavesdropping is easy. Simply dial the Boardroom number when it is is vacant, stay on the line and wait for the meeting to begin. This is a surprisingly well-known (and used) eavesdropping trick.
Solutions: Only connect the Boardroom speakerphone to the outside line when it is actually needed. Next best... Deactivate the auto-answer feature permanently. If permanent deactivation is not possible, program it off. Your countermeasures team will re-inspect it for you each visit. You do have a countermeasures team checking your Boardroom, don't you?
Hotels Are Fertile Ground for Voyeurs
• There has been a recent uptick in hotel voyeurism stories here. Most involve spycams, a few about holes poked in walls, and this odd-ball story out of Florida... with implications for travelers everywhere: A husband and wife checked into their hotel room and noticed the peephole in the door had been reversed! People on the outside could clearly see into their room.
Hotel door peepholes are mandated by law in the U.S. This door had two of them; one at regular height, and lower one three feet from the ground (legally compliant for people in wheelchairs). The lower one was reversed.
Hotels in the Hollywood, Florida area cater to young couples visiting on vacation, school breaks and cruise ships. The area is a rich target for pornography manufacturers. It is unlikely this is an isolated incident.
Recommendations: Keep a small, high-power flashlight in your kit and a long pin (for poking into pin-holes, of course). Carefully check your hotel room upon arrival. Start with the peephole. Look into unusual holes, open vents, etc. keeping in mind the field of view from that perspective. Bathrooms and beds are usually the targeted viewing areas. Be aware of electronic items which do not look like standard hotel room items. A clock (or clock radio) which looks too new, for example, could be a spycam. If in doubt, face it toward the wall. "Smoke detectors" in strange places, or too many of them, is another clue there might be a problem. If you think you have found something suspicious, call the police, not the front desk, for further investigation. You want your case well-documented, and the evidence properly handled when you say, "See you in court."
If your business is holding an off-site meeting at a hotel or resort, bring along your countermeasures team. In addition to preventing information losses, they can save you from this type of embarrassment.
Want to Spy on the International Space Station?
Click here. While the crew is working you can eavesdrop on their transmissions - often sporadic - and watch the progress map. During sleep periods, they turn on the outside spycams. Just listening to them now. Interesting. They are housecleaning. Sucking lint out of the ducts with a vacuum cleaner! Houston said, "Glad it is all clean and you didn't see a pair of eyes staring back at you."
From America, this is Kevin.
Wrong + Wrong ≠ Right... in any language.
German authorities have searched the offices of mail and logistics company Deutsche Post in connection with a snooping scandal at Deutsche Telekom... Deutsche Telekom acknowledged in June last year that it had illegally monitored phone call records in 2005 and 2006, amid allegations that Telekom had targeted board members and journalists to stop media leaks. (more)
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