Why the Spy Trade is Such a Booming Industry

The alleged Russian plot that targeted the U.S. presidential election has raised concerns we're headed for Cold War levels of spying, but there's actually plenty of evidence the world soared past that point years ago...

There are now an estimated 120 countries involved in espionage, each trying to infiltrate military, political and economic targets all over the world...

And those are just the official spy operations. Non-state and corporate spies have become much more active, not to mention rogue cyber warriors who sell their wares as independents and major organized crime and terror groups.

More threats, bigger budgets... more

GCHQ Spy Master Quits UK’s Eavesdropping Nerve Centre

UK - GCHQ boss Robert Hannigan only took on the post in April 2014, but on Monday—in a surprise move—

he quit the job, citing "personal reasons."

He won't be handing in his (encryption) keys until a successor is found, GCHQ said.

In a letter to the UK's foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, Hannigan said that he was "proud" of the work he has overseen at the eavesdropping concrete doughnut.

He flagged up the National Cyber Security Centre as one of GCHQ's "achievements" under his tenure.

"While this work must remain secret, you will know how many lives have been saved in this country and overseas by the work of GCHQ," he added in his missive to Johnson. more

"Make Your Phone as Private as a Phone Booth"

The Hush-A-Phone
A voice silencer designed for confidential conversation, clear transmission and office quite. Not a permanent attachment. Slips right on and off the mouthpiece of any phone.

Office quite during phone talks is also assured. The Hush-A-Phone does not allow your voice to escape into the room. It excludes noises from the transmitter, giving a quiet wire and clearer transmission.


Prominent business firms are using it and recommend it as an efficiency promoter.

Tear this (ad) out and mail with your letterhead for free booklet "How to make your phone as private as a booth."

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CIA Divulges Procedures for Information on Citizens

via The Wall Street Journal...
In a rare act of transparency, the Central Intelligence Agency for the first time has published a fully declassified version of its procedures for handling information on “U.S. persons,” a category that includes American citizens in the country or overseas.

The new guidelines, which were published in full on the agency’s website on Wednesday, are meant to address the fact that large amounts of communications and other data are collected when spying on foreigners. The previous guidelines date to 1982 and had been updated through a patchwork of policies, but hadn’t been overhauled for the digital age, CIA officials said.

In the past, intelligence officers could promptly review reports that might contain references to U.S. persons or the contents of their communications, and then decide how to handle that information in line with privacy rules. But today, it’s not always feasible to do that in short order because the CIA is collecting information in far larger volumes. A digital storage device, for instance, can hold thousands of pages of material, which a CIA officer has to review.

The new guidelines require the CIA to purge any especially sensitive information it has stored after five years if it hasn’t been evaluated to see if it contains information about U.S. persons. Such sensitive information includes the contents of any communications, officials said. Information that’s deemed less sensitive, like the business records of a foreign company that aren’t expected to contain information about U.S. persons, must be purged after 25 years if it hasn’t been evaluated. more

Some Days No One Wants to be a Spy

via Kickstarter.com
About this project
Let me ask you…

What if you could actually be the main character in your favorite action or spy movie?

Maybe you always wanted to be James Bond, Ethan Hunt from Mission Impossible, Jason Bourne and or any other “spy”?

What if there was a way you could actually become your favorite action star in a real life-role playing experience?

I’m not talking about going with all the other “adventure companies” who charge you to…

Sit around in some garage, property or warehouse , drive around a track, “train” to be a spy, climb walls and shoot some targets. Or…

Some boring adventure where you sit around and pretend you’re in a mission, with some instructors by your side the whole time. You See…

I am talking about a totally unique experience…

Become The Action Star of Your Own Real Life-Fast Paced Spy Adventure…

Eliminating the “bad guys”…Saving the “girl”, and or Rescuing the “world” by completing a mission only you can do. This Is You…

Being Involved In Heart-Pumping Thrills… more

This has to be a joke, or a scam. Can you imagine the liability for letting customers run across airplane wings? ~Kevin

Corporate Espionage: Chinese v. Chinese

Police have arrested Huawei’s six top executives for allegedly leaking vital information to its rival company, LeEco.

Huawei is one of the major phone makers in China...

Back in September 2013, HTC’s top executives had been arrested for stealing next generation software interface and were accused of selling them to the Chengdu city government. Those executives were jailed, and it was clearly one of the worst years for HTC.

Corporate espionage looks exciting in movies, but is certainly not pleasing when it is between leading companies. more

Cautionary Tale - Why You Need an Industrial Espionage Protection Strategy

by Rhiannon Williams
The world of good business has always been driven by rivalry... 


Razer's hefty three-screened gaming laptop is still at large is still at large. Chief executive Min-Liang Tan called the theft “industrial espionage”, and proffered a $25,000 reward for information to secure the arrest and conviction of the culprit(s)...

As for the Razer laptops, they’re still at large. Knock-off versions have already surfaced online, and several auctions claiming to list the stolen items have started in China and Singapore, which, if real, should lead authorities straight to the thieves. Maybe Razer should spend the reward money on new security. more

Quick, Call Guinness - “Most Wiretapped Individual” on Earth

Philippines - Senator Leila de Lima on Wednesday earned a new title as the “most wiretapped individual” on earth. 

Now zipped lipped.

This title was given to her in jest by Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson before she interpellated him on the floor on the proposed Expanded Anti-Wiretapping Act.

Lacson made the remark when De Lima asked permission if he would yield to some of her questions about the measure.

Responding to De Lima’s query, Lacson said: “Gladly and willingly to probably the most wiretapped individual on planet earth.”

“Thank you for acknowledging that,” De Lima answered. more

Ex-Boyfried Charged - Common Smartphone Eavesdropping

NY - A Rome man has been charged with felony eavesdropping,

according to the Oneida County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies charged Anthony Swancot, 33, after an investigation revealed he installed an app on his ex-girlfriend's cell phone that tracked her location and forwarded copies to his cell phone of each text message she sent from her phone, authorities said.

The app was allegedly installed on Nov. 3, without the victim's knowledge, officials said. more

Simple Tips for Thwarting Common Smartphone Eavesdropping

At Secure Network in Armory Square they actually don't get a lot of people calling about their phone being hacked-because they don't always know its happening.

The president of Secure Network says these "eavesdropping" apps are common. but they are not marketed that way. ...he says you should be the only one using your phone.

"I wouldn't relinquish your phone to somebody who started putting apps on your phone or downloading things on your phone," said Steve Stasiukonis, "be conscious of what's on your phone if things are obviously if they appear out of place you know the suspect in question it." You can also look to see if your data plan is getting more expensive. more

• Make sure your phone requires (good quality) password or fingerprint access. 
• If you suspect a problem, do a full factory reset, and don't reload your backup. ~Kevin

Industrial Espionage and Technical Surveillance Counter Measurers

Industrial Espionage and Technical Surveillance Counter Measurers (book)
Authors: Androulidakis, Iosif, Kioupakis, Fragkiskos – Emmanouil

Discusses how industrial espionage and technical surveillance affect companies, organizations and individuals.

This book examines technical aspects of industrial espionage and its impact in modern companies, organizations, and individuals while emphasizing the importance of intellectual property in the information era. The authors discuss the problem itself and then provide statistics and real world cases.

The main contribution provides a detailed discussion of the actual equipment, tools and techniques concerning technical surveillance in the framework of espionage. Moreover, they present the best practices and methods of detection (technical surveillance counter measures) as well as means of intellectual property protection.

Number of Illustrations and Tables
65 b/w illustrations, 9 illustrations in colour

Topics:

• Communications Engineering, Networks
• Systems and Data Security
• Security Science and Technology
• Forensic Science

Springer | Signals & Communication | March 12, 2016 | ISBN-10: 331928665X | 126 pages | pdf | 5.58 mb

TV Gardening Expert Digs Dirt Using Spycam

UK - A TV gardening presenter faces jail after he admitted using a camera hidden in an air freshener to film women tenants showering. 

Stephen Brookes faces jail after capturing footage of women on his iPhone. Stephen Brookes, 55, set up the camera to capture footage that could be downloaded to an app on his iPhone.

The expert, who has appeared on BBC radio as a guest, spied on seven women between November 2015 and September last year at his home in Stratford-upon-Avon...

Police discovered 300 files, including videos taken near a shower and toilet, after seizing a memory card, iPhone and iPad belonging to Brookes.

Brookes was known as “Mr Rotavator” in the 1990s and has broadcast live from London’s Chelsea Flower Show.  more

UPDATE (2/8/17) - Stephen Brookes, a gardening expert, has also been ordered to register as a sex offender for seven years... (and) has been jailed for 12 months for using a hidden camera to spy on young women in a bathroom. more

State Insurer Caught up in Eavesdropping Scandal

Chinese insurance regulator said that a state insurer used an iPhone and a voice recorder to eavesdrop on inspectors.

China Insurance Regulatory Commission Shandong bureau said Saturday that the eavesdropping devices were found at the Weifang office of Yingda Taihe Property Insurance.

The regulator had been inspecting the Shandong branch.

On Jan. 6, inspectors found the iPhone and voice recorder taped under their chairs. Neither Yingda nor the regulator elaborated on how the tapping devices were found.

"Their purpose was to listen in on the discussions, so that they could obstruct and thwart inspections," sources with the insurance regulator said. more

This is why accounting firms who conduct on-site audits often have their dedicated offices swept for bugs. Smart. ~Kevin

Police Bang Wang for Spycam - Again

CT - A Hartford man was arrested for allegedly videotaping over a dozen women in the unisex bathroom at UConn’s Law School law library has been arrested on similar charges in Vernon.

Yiyan Wang, 30, was arrested on voyeurism charges for offenses that happened on June 15 and 26 in 2016. He was arrested on Wednesday. He was released on $5,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court on January 24.

On October 12 Wang was charged with 15 counts of voyeurism, one count of disorderly conduct – which encompasses “peeping tom” incidents in the state of Connecticut – and one count of attempting to commit voyeurism. more

If You Need an In-House TSCM Manager Copy This Job Posting

 If in-house is not practical for you, call me. This is what we do. ~Kevin

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Abbott Laboratories is seeking an experienced Senior Technical Security Counter Measures (TSCM) professional to serve as a program manager in charge of providing support towards the implementation and management of protecting the companies Intellectual Property and maintaining product integrity.

TSCM duties include but are not limited to the following tasks:

• Conducting TSCM surveys and inspections to monitor for evasive radio frequency signals, and perform a wide variety of physical and technical security related functions at Abbott facilities as well as inspecting for technical penetrations, hazards, and physical security weaknesses that could result in the unauthorized access to sensitive material and proprietary Intellectual Property belonging to Abbot Laboratories. TSCM sweeps are to be conducted for the 200 Abbott facilities located domestically and abroad.

• Pre-Construction Advisory Services: Providing assistance and guidance to Abbott leadership prior to new construction or modification of an existing space to safeguard areas from vulnerabilities associated with technical hazards and/or penetrations that can occur during facility construction or modification. Coordinate projects associated with security enhancements or downgrades as well as new facility construction requirements.

• Conference Support: Onsite monitoring of Abbott sponsored conferences to safeguard against surreptitious monitoring when the area used for discussion of sensitive Intellectual Property is not properly constructed, security measures are not maintained, or when deemed necessary to safeguard information or personnel. Analyze all voice and data communications schemes, systems, circuits, and equipment for susceptibility to interception and compromise.

• Technical Security advice and assistance: Brief Security Division managers on programmatic security issues that could have institutional impact as well as conduct TSCM threat and awareness briefings to Abbott management and employees as necessary. Providing comprehensive, risk‐based technical security advice, guidance, and general security support to offices and activities the TSCM Office supports; preparing written correspondence and after-action reports to include TSCM inspection findings and recommendations reports, analytical reports, technical security awareness briefings, technical briefings, and vulnerability reports; conducting analysis and recommending solutions to a variety of complex technical surveillance, and counter-surveillance detection or other technical vulnerabilities. Conduct initial laboratory analyses and/or evaluation of any suspect surveillance device discovered, and coordinate with the appropriate Law Enforcement Agencies as appropriate.

• Follow Up Inspections: Coordinating with Security Managers and facilities management in supported areas to correct deficiencies (i.e., technical hazards, technical vulnerabilities and Standard Operating Procedures that affect technical security) and guide implementation of recommended solutions and technical countermeasures.

Perform other related duties and functions as assigned.  more