Teacher's Threat - Professor accused of bugging colleague's office

TX - A professor with the University of Texas-Pan American is free on a personal recognizance bond after being accused of planting a recording device in a colleague’s office.

FutureWatch: New office decor for college professors.

UTPA police arrested chemistry professor Hassan Ahmad on Thursday, according to a news release from the university. Ahmad appeared before an Edinburg municipal judge who formally charged him with one count of unlawful interception, use or disclosure of wire, oral or electronic communication and set a $20,000 personal recognizance bond. The charge is a second-degree felony, punishable by a prison term of two to 20 years and a fine of up to $10,000 upon conviction. The investigation began June 8 after another faculty member discovered a recording device in his office... (more)

Business Espionage - Saab Exec Cell Bugged

The head of Swedish defence group Saab alleged on Friday that his cell phone had been bugged repeatedly during negotiations with Switzerland over Saab's sale of 22 Gripen fighter jets.

"I am closely watched and I know that my cell phone has been bugged on several occasions. Text messages have also been sent from my cell phone, in both Swedish and English, on various occasions and to various contacts," Saab chief executive Haakan Buskhe told Sweden's Svenska Dagbladet in an interview.

He suggested he was a target of industrial espionage, but did not identify by name the people or companies which may have been behind the action. (more)

Western Australia Mining Company Reportedly Bugged

Australia - In the past week the buzz around Perth business circles has been that a WA mining company swept its offices recently and found a bug... 

It's the latest variant of other rumours: a cable with a microphone found behind the secretary's photocopier, or a USB device plugged into a computer to record keystrokes to hopefully purloin top secret codes.

Sorting fact from fiction in the shadowy world is tricky, with few executives willing to go on the record in what is an understandably sensitive area... (more)

Bikie TSCM... Fail

Australia - Paranoid Queensland criminals are hiring security experts to sweep their houses for bugs and other hidden police surveillance equipment, leaving detectives frustrated.

They can also buy sophisticated "bug detection" kits, noise generators, hidden camera scanners and phone tap detectors online and in-store for as little as $450.

While police spend months planning operations involving placement of listening devices, their targets can order kits that allow them to identify suspicious points and keep their clandestine activities under even closer wraps.

Bikie gangs, such as the notorious Finks, previously have used security experts to check their homes. (more)

Law enforcement loves stories like these. The more Bikie gangs (motorcycle gangs) rely on spy shop devices and less-than-ethical sweepers, the greater the Bikie's false sense of security. Easy collar. How do we know? The case went to court.

Court documents describe Finks member Tama Lewis talking, in 2008, about enlisting security firm OzSpy to sweep his home...

Business Espionage - Blueprint Blues to Reds

A previously unknown cyber worm preying on machinery blueprints has been exposed in Latin America. The new virus steals the blueprints and sends them to e-mail accounts registered in China. A number of machines in the US have been infected.

The worm dubbed ACAD/Medre.A targets the AutoCAD program used by architects, engineers, project managers and designers to create blueprints, including machines, buildings, household appliances and other inventions...

“ACAD/Medre.A is a serious example of suspected industrial espionage,” said Richard Zweinenberg, senior research fellow at ESET. (more)

"As always, should you or any of your Walmart Force be caught or killed, the Secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions."

A public relations officer linked to Walmart posed as a journalist at a press conference held by a labor group highlighting tough working conditions in the warehouses that supply big retailers. 

Stephanie Harnett, a publicist working for Mercury Communications, which has been retained by Walmart to assist in its effort to open a new store in the Chinatown area of Los Angeles, claimed to be a student journalist called "Zoe Mitchell" when she turned up at the event on 6 June.

She then spoke to and recorded an interview with an activist from Warehouse Workers United...

The subterfuge only became apparent on Wednesday, when Harnett turned up at a different event and this time used her real name. She was spotted by members of WWU who recognised her and were stunned to see her handing out Mercury business cards with a completely different identity.

Walmart moved to distance itself from her actions on Thursday, and Mercury said neither it nor the retail giant had "approved, authorized or directed" her actions. It said she was no longer working for the firm. (more) (audio from the disclaimer experts)

Chinese Upgrade Eavesdropping Center

China has upgraded a key eavesdropping site in southeastern Fujian province opposite Taiwan, according to images taken by new commercial satellites, a U.S. weekly reported Monday.

Defense News reported from Taipei that according to an analysis of the high-definition satellite photos, the facility on Dongjing Shan, near Daqiu village in Fujian province, has been upgraded and can now cover all of Taiwan and even a U.S. base in Okinawa.

With the recent release of high resolution imagery of Google Earth and Terraserver, electronic intelligence specialists said they have spotted parabolic dishes not seen in previous lower resolution imagery from non-classified sources. (More)

...and then Canada's Privacy Commissioner heard about it!

Canada - The federal government has hit the pause button on its plan to eavesdrop at border points after confirmation Tuesday that some travelers at the Halifax airport were secretly recorded.

Privacy commissioner Jennifer Stoddart

But there were still many unanswered questions about the surveillance plan.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said he has told the Canada Border Services Agency to place audio monitoring on hold until a study of the privacy implications is complete. (more)

Corporate espionage via social media rampant in India

India - Over 35 per cent of companies operating in various sectors across India are engaged in corporate espionage to gain advantage over their competitors and are even spying on their employees via social networking Web sites, according to a just-concluded survey undertaken by apex industry body Assocham.

Mr D.S. Rawat, Secretary-General, Assocham.

Assocham carried out a covert survey during the January-May period and interacted with about 1,500 CEOs and EDs from diverse sectors in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai to ascertain the measures taken by India Inc to safeguard their data, plans, clients' details, products and other confidential and trade-related secrets.

Besides, Assocham representatives also interacted with about 200 private eye agencies, corporate spooks, detective firms, surveillance agencies and trained sleuths in the five cities, Mr D.S. Rawat, Secretary-General, Assocham, said in a statement here. (more)

And You Thought Spying Was a Lone Wolf Occupation

Turkey has arrested 49 military officers in the second phase of an operation to dismantle a military espionage ring in the country. 

 

Turkish newspaper Today’s Zaman quoted Izmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office as saying that the 49 arrestees were among the 51 officers against whom arrest warrants had been issued...

The officers are accused of blackmailing, and illegally obtaining military information. The gang reportedly used prostitutes to blackmail and obtain classified security information from high-ranking officers and senior bureaucrats.

The first phase of the operation was launched in May when 20 people were arrested for involvement in the espionage gang. (more)

Spybusters Tip #069: Business espionage also uses blackmail, and effort is even more massive. Don't let yourself slip into a compromising position. It's a quicksand pit.

Fake IDs from Internet Vendors Fool Experts

YIN - Overseas forgers from as far away as China are shipping fake driver's license and other IDs to the United States that can bypass even the newest electronic digital security systems...

Most troubling to authorities is the sophistication of the forgeries: Digital holograms are replicated, PVC plastic identical to that found in credit cards is used, and ink appearing only under ultraviolet light is stamped onto the cards...

The overseas forgers are bold enough to sell their wares on websites, USA TODAY research finds. Anyone with an Internet connection and $75 to $200 can order their personalized ID card online from such companies as ID Chief. Buyers pick the state, address, name and send in a scanned photo and signature to complete their profile.

YANG - For buyers from ID Chief and other companies, the easy-to-use online form does not come without risk. Buyers have reported identity theft and hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt in their names after buying from the Chinese forgers, authorities say. (more)

Sports Espionage at Euro 2012

England's challenge at Euro 2012 almost was drastically undermined after the team's tactics were leaked to rival Sweden by a snooping journalist.

Ola Billger, 40, used binoculars to spy on England coach Roy Hodgson as he outlined his defensive plan to his team at a Kiev hotel ahead of last Friday's Group D clash.

The Swedish hack watched for 40 minutes and compiled detailed notes... (more)

Wiretap Law May Soon Include Email Snooping

Adel Abadir and Annabelle Zaratzian got divorced. It came out later that Adel knew too much about his ex-wife's income. He had placed spyware on her computer which secretly forwarded all her emails to him. She sued...

Zaratzian’s suit — first filed Dec. 3, 2010, in U.S. District Court in White Plains — is one of the first in the country to allege a more eye-opening charge: wiretapping, an accusation more reminiscent of Watergate and the Cold War than an otherwise run-of-the-mill divorce case.

Zaratzian’s definition of wiretapping depends on a novel legal theory, that auto-forwarding email represents a “contemporaneous” interception of electronic communications, and experts have been mixed on whether that definition will ultimately prevail in the courts. But if it does it could be the beginning of significant new interpretation of the law, opening up new legal avenues for those looking to sue, in addition to potentially more criminal prosecutions under federal wiretapping statutes, which haven’t been updated since a 1986 revision...

The case is now scheduled for a status conference June 18, before a potential trial later this year. (more)

Pennsylvania Wiretap Law Revamped

PA - Public safety trumped concerns about personal privacy on Wednesday as the state House of Representatives cast a lopsided vote in favor of the first overhaul of Pennsylvania's wiretapping law in 14 years.

The bill, which was sent to the Senate by a 145-52 vote, would ease restrictions on civilians secretly recording other citizens and expand the government's ability to tap cell-phone technology....

Another provision would allow conversations to be recorded without the consent of other parties if the person doing the recording believes it may provide evidence of a first-degree felony or a crime of violence. Current law bars all recordings unless all parties consent.

Even if a civilian makes an illegal recording, the bill would allow the government to use it as evidence in a criminal investigation and prosecution. (more)

Warrantless Wiretapping - The Backlash Begins

Sen. Ron Wyden teamed up with Colorado Democrat Mark Udall to block the Obama administrations effort to extend the surveillance law that has resulted in a broad warrantless wiretapping campaign of American citizens.

Wyden, who has long opposed the wiretapping program offered an amendment last week that would specifically prohibit such unauthorized surveillance. Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee voted overwhelmingly to reject that provision last week. (more) (video rebuttal)