Thanks to its status as a financial centre, Switzerland is seeing a sharp rise in spying activities amid the global economic crisis, the Swiss intelligence service told AFP.
"We have seen a general interest for financial information," Juerg Buehler, who heads the service, part of the defence ministry, said in an interview. "This trend is reinforced with the financial crisis and competition between financial centres..."
Given the rising risks of foreign intelligence penetration, Buehler said his service is trying to make the banking industry aware of the dangers.
But he acknowledged that "we cannot have police patrolling in front of every bank". (more)Side note: Most financial institutions already retain the services of eavesdropping detection / counterespionage consulting firms. ~Kevin
"Ok, mom, we get it."MA - Two sisters in Quincy say a roommate they found on Craigslist was spying on them.Police arrested 42-year-old Deryck Reid after one of the sisters says she stepped out of the shower and Reid was pointing a cell phone camera in her direction.Police searched the apartment on Nightingale Avenue in South Quincy and found video equipment, laptops and a camcorder in Reid's room.Police say that Reid may have committed similar crimes in the past. (more)
US - State and Federal Wiretapping Decreases in 2008
A recent report releases information on 2008 state and federal wiretapping programs.
1,891: Wiretaps authorized by federal and state courts in 200814: Percentage decrease in wiretaps from 2007 to 2008386: Number of applications by federal authorities for wiretaps in 2008
1,505: Number of applications by state authorities for wiretaps in 2008
41 days: Average operating time for a wiretap
92: Average number of people whose communications were intercepted per wiretap order
(more)
The Colombian government offers a 200 million peso (US$ 90 thousand) reward for information leading to those who ordered the illegal wiretapping carried out by Colombia's intelligence service DAS. (more)
Until recently, it has been a one-way transmission path for spycamers. They see you. (click photo to enlarge)A few years ago, a product came on the market that lets you see what the stalkers are stalking using their wireless cameras in the 900 MHz - 2.4 Ghz frequency range. Great, but what about all the new spycams being sold which operate in the 5.8 GHz range? Just released is the VS-125 by Suresafe Technology, Inc. It covers the missing band 5.8 GHz band and has a few other surprises as well. It scans the 1.2 GHz and 2.4 GHz bands... simultaneously. It also demodulates audio so you can hear as well as see. (more)How much does it cost? $450.USD, plus any bank transfer charges and shipping. ~Kevin
In an upcoming divorce trial, a Brooklyn woman may introduce e-mails surreptitiously culled from her estranged husband's e-mail account as evidence of his scheme to hide his true income, a Supreme Court judge has ruled.Justice Jeffrey S. Sunshine said the woman's accessing of her husband's account did not constitute "eavesdropping" under New York's Penal Law and therefore does not render the e-mails inadmissible.The decision turned on the fact that the wife looked at e-mails stored in her husband's account, rather than intercepting e-mails while they were "in transit" to him. (more)
...you know anyone can afford, and will use, bugs.
Nick goes to the Ranch to speak to Victor and Adam opens the door. They tussle over a package that was on the stoop. Nick says he doesn't trust him - he tried to frame their father! Adam says the package is just braille computer programs. Adam stages a stumble to distract Nick, who leaves in a huff. Adam opens the box - it looks like bugging devices! He decides to test them out - he wires the house up and grins as he realizes that they work! (The Young and the Restless)
It takes covert photos.It records video movies.It captures sound, too!And... you never need to tip your hand by touching any On / Off / Record switches. Just tip your hand wearing the golden ring and the camera magically does your spy bidding. Just make sure your shirt has black buttons. (more)Why do I mention it?So you will know what you're up against.
via Eric Geier, enterpriseitplanet.com...When I discuss Wi-Fi security, I try to demonstrate what a Wi-Fi eavesdropper or hacker could see from an unencrypted wireless network. This way you can imagine what someone from the parking lot or nearby can see of the data traveling between you and the access point (AP)... In this article, we'll look at several different online and network services or communication types that are vulnerable to sniffing or capturing by eavesdroppers. Along the way, I'll give tips on how you could secure them, over and above encrypting the entire link. (
more)I agree with Eric and show my clients how easy it is to intercept unencrypted transmission, too. We use similar techniques. There is just something about actually seeing it which makes it very real. You'll never trust a public Wi-Fi hot spot again. ~Kevin
Bernard Leon Barker was a hero to many, first as a World War II flier and prisoner of war, later as a CIA operative working to overthrow Fidel Castro. But he is best remembered as a White House ''plumber:'' one of the burglars whose break-in helped topple a U.S. president.
He died Friday at the Veteran's Administration Medical Center in Miami at 92.
Barker -- nicknamed ''Macho'' as an infant -- was a protégé of the late E. Howard Hunt, the CIA mastermind who planned the Bay of Pigs and Watergate operations. (more)
via Wikipedia...
"After Barker's release from prison, he worked as a building inspector for the city of Miami, Florida, earning $18,512 per year. He elected early retirement in 1982 rather than fight proceedings seeking his dismissal for loafing on the job." (more)
Would you believe... a blog about spy pens?spypensonline.com is a brand new blog.
We'll keep an eye on it."Spy pen camera’s are the ideal tool for covert surveillance. But before buying one, here's a few things you must consider..." (more)
In China, video cameras are being installed in almost 60,000 examination halls to prevent cheating in next week's national college entrance exams. In the past, some students have been caught using hi-tech equipment, including tiny radio receivers, to get help with exam questions.In April, eight parents and teachers caught helping children cheat were sentenced to prison. China takes the cheating very seriously. (more)
Lebanon's military prosecutor charged 10 more Lebanese with spying for Israel, bringing to 55 the total this year, a judicial source said. Four of those charged were already in custody, having been detained on suspicion of the crime, and the other six have yet to be arrested. (more)
Trial of CIA, Italian agents provides rare look at intelligence work... Testimony about the alleged 'rendition' of Egyptian Abu Omar features feuds and rogue conduct in a case that has apparently made and crushed careers. (more)
TX - When a 3-year-old patient kept having setbacks during her recovery, doctors at Dell Children's Medical Center suspected that the child's mother was to blame, Austin police said Wednesday.They set up a hidden camera in the child's hospital room that police and court records said soon recorded Emily Beth McDonald smearing human waste on the girl's intravenous line, which can cause potentially life-threatening illnesses. (more)
UPDATE - An Austin woman has been accused of repeatedly smearing human waste on her 3-year-old daughter's intravenous feeding line, potentially causing life-threatening infections.
Emily Beth McDonald, 23, was charged with felony injury to a child.
According to an arrest affidavit, a surveillance video at Dell Children's Medical Center captured McDonald placing feces from a soiled diaper on the cap of a tube with a direct link to the child's bloodstream. (more)
Thanks to its status as a financial centre, Switzerland is seeing a sharp rise in spying activities amid the global economic crisis, the Swiss intelligence service told AFP. 
