Spies That Don't Come in From the Cold

China Rivals US Foothold In Antarctica, Builds Base With Potential To Eavesdrop On Neighbors

China is looking to expand its presence in Antarctica by resuming construction on the country’s fifth station in the region.

“While the station can provide tracking and communications for China’s growing array of scientific polar observation satellites, its equipment can concurrently be used for intercepting other nations’ satellite communications,” the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said in a new report. more

Top Harvard Scientist: Alien mothership might be spying on us from orbit...

Prof Avi Loeb claims we shouldn't dismiss the possibility that we have already been visited by extraterrestrial life.

It’s a conspiracy theory so prevalent it has entered the mainstream. Everyone, it seems, has heard of the idea that the US government is sitting on proof that extraterrestrials exist and have been visiting Earth for decades.

It’s easy to dismiss such stories, but seriously, could there be even a small amount of truth in it? Could extraterrestrial probes really be functioning near Earth? We don’t know. But Harvard astronomer Prof Avi Loeb’s Galileo Project aims to investigate... more

Quiz - Would You Make a Good Spy?

Test yourself for fun. Learn what makes a good spy. (Before you hire any TSCM inspection / counterespionage consultant make sure they know what makes a good spy, too.)

This quiz was originally published in, A Handbook for Spies, 1980, Wolfgang Lotz (a real spy), Harper & Row, Publishers, New York, NY and is available at amazon.com.

The following questionnaire has been designed to determine the degree of your suitability as a prospective secret agent. The results of this test will also indicate what type of spy or agent you are likely to become – for example, an informer, a “stinker”, a double agent, a resident, master spy, a spymaster.

These terms will be explained later. For the present you should approach the test with an open mind. You will not have to show your answers to anyone, and therefore you can afford to be absolutely honest in your replies.

There are three to five possible answers to each question. Mark the one that is closest to the truth, and after you have answered all ten questions, award yourself the number of points indicated in the key that follows the questionnaire. An evaluation of your point total and an analysis of each of the questions follows. You may study it at your leisure only after completing the test. (If you want an honest and comprehensive appraisal, don’t look ahead now.) THE SPY QUIZ

Australia urges U.S. to Drop Espionage Case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange

Australia - A cross-party group of Australian politicians has called on the United States to drop an espionage case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and allow the Australian citizen to return home.

In an open letter to U.S. Attorney-General Merrick Garland, 48 members of Parliament and the Senate, including 13 from the ruling Labor Party, said the case against Mr. Assange would “set a dangerous precedent for all global citizens, journalists, publishers, media organizations and the freedom of the press.” more 

This Week in Spy News

• FBI arrests 21-year-old Air National Guardsman suspected of leaking classified documents more

• Norway expels 15 Russian diplomats accused of spying more

• China accused of spying to create passenger jet more

• South Korea opposition calls for probe into US spying more

• South Korea says leaked US intel document 'untrue', amid spying allegations more

• Putin Approved Arrest of US Reporter on Spying Charges more

• Ukrainian hackers say they have compromised Russian spy who hacked Democrats in 2016 more

• The ‘nice, ordinary’ family suspected of being Russian spies more

• GCHQ gets first woman to lead UK spy agency more

• Man suspected of being Stakeknife, Britain’s top spy in IRA, dies more

• Malfunctioning Russian Missile May Have Saved RC-135 Spy Plane more

• Israeli Mercenary Spies Attacked iPhones Through Malicious Invitations to Calendar more

The Mail Room Guy and the USB Spy Cable

Someone "lost" a USB charging cable. You found it. Lucky you? Maybe not...

USB spy cables look exactly like legitimate ones... exactly. 

In this example, the competition has paid an inside employee (the Mail Room guy) to drop a few cables around certain parts of the corporate headquarters. They didn't tell him why. And, he doesn't care. Why should he? He gets $50 per cable dropped.

Once plugged in, the cable takes control of your device. (cell phone, laptop, desktop, etc.) All your data becomes accessible. Next, pre-loaded penetration tools spring into action.

The connection can be used as a pivot point to attack other computers on the network. This is controlled remotely by the spy/hacker, via Wi-Fi to the internet, or via their nearby smartphone.

Once the hacker has infiltrated your network, more data can be extracted, viruses planted, or a ransomware attack staged. Obviously, this is dangerous in a business environment.

Recommendations:
• Mark your cables so if swapped you'll notice.
• Call us. We test USB cables as part of our debugging sweeps.
• If you use our services, we will give you a free test instrument so you can test new cables yourself.

Hackers Can Open Nexx Garage Doors Remotely...

...and there's no fix!

Multiple vulnerabilities discovered Nexx smart devices can be exploited to control garage doors, disable home alarms, or smart plugs.

There are five security issues disclosed publicly, with severity scores ranging from medium to critical that the vendor has yet to acknowledge and fix. more

Doctor Slipped Cleaner into Spouse’s Tea - He Installed Cameras

...now she’s charged.

A Mission Viejo dermatologist is accused of using liquid cleaner to try to poison her husband. Suspicious about the taste of his tea, he installed cameras at home. 

Growing suspicious, Chen secretly installed cameras around his Irvine home where, according to the restraining order request, he captured video of Yu pouring liquid drain cleaner into his cup when he left it unattended... 

According to prosecutors, video showed Yu pouring the chemical into the tea on July 11, 18 and 25. more

Florida Grounds Drones over Fears of Spying

Police, fire and other government agencies across Florida must ground millions of dollars in aerial drones because of a new state rule banning the agencies from using devices made by China-based DJI. 

The DJI drones are among the most widely used in the world, but Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration said they pose a security threat and did not include them on a list of approved drone manufacturers. more

A New Wave of Lawsuits - Wiretapping Litigation for Website Analytics

2022 saw a new wave of class action lawsuits targeting companies that use technology to track consumers’ interfaces on their websites...

Plaintiffs often ground their claims in the electronic interception provisions of federal and state wiretapping laws. Under the Federal Wiretap Act of 1968, a person is prohibited from “intentionally intercept[ing] … any … electronic communication.” 18 U.S.C. § 2511(1)(a) (2022). The FWA and many state statutes define “interception” as “acquiring the contents of that electronic communication.” Id. § 2510(4). “Content” is defined as “any information concerning the substance, purport[] or meaning of that communication.” Id. § 2510(8). 

Under the FWA, a court may require a defendant to pay $10,000 per violation. Id. § 2520(c)(2). Fines under similar state laws range from $1,000 to $50,000 per violation, depending on the state. more

The Most Insane Story In Gaming Makes For A Fantastic Biopic

Tetris (Movie) Review:

Of the many events that have happened across the gaming industry, the story of Tetris is one of the most interesting. This simple puzzle game made in Russia had entire companies funding men to infiltrate the USSR to try and get their rights from their Ministry of Technology. Communist personnel played these capitalists off each other, with politics and corporate rivalry thrown in for good measure...

You wouldn’t think watching a bunch of business meetings would be that interesting but they’re the most exciting part of the movie. ELORG invited all three men to meet them at the same time but kept separate from each other. They move back and forth in a mixture of business and interrogations as different layers of corporate espionage and corrupt under-the-table dealings are peeled back. more

Enjoy the weekend!

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - This Time it's The Tailor

A San Francisco tailor was arrested for filming coworkers with a camera disguised as a clock in the dressing room of a clothing cleaner where they all worked.

Andrew Hong, 31, was booked Saturday night on suspicion of invasion of privacy. But the months-long investigation continues as San Francisco Police Department’s Special Victims Unit asks others to come forward with information about the case.

...a woman came to the Northern Station to report a hidden camera at a Divisadero Street clothing cleaner...

She told officers she found it in the dressing room and that it appeared to be the kind of camera used for home surveillance, police said. more

Why More Businesses Are Not Conducting Periodic TSCM Inspections

IT & Security Pros Pressured to Keep Quiet About Data Breaches

Organizations globally are under tremendous pressure to address evolving threats like ransomware, zero-day vulnerabilities, and espionage, and they face challenges in extending security coverage across multiple environments and dealing with an ongoing skills shortage, according to Bitdefender.

Alarmingly, more than 42% of the total IT/security professionals surveyed said they have been told to keep a breach confidential when they knew it should be reported and 30% said they have kept a breach confidential.

43% of IT/security professionals surveyed said extending capabilities across multiple environments (on-premises, cloud, and hybrid) is the greatest challenge they face which tied with complexity of security solutions also at 43%.

Not having the security skill set to drive full value came in as a strong second at 36%. more

This is an old phenomenon. We call it The Ostrich Effect.

Liz Hurley Left 'Mortified' After Media Bugged Devices, Court Heard

A PRIVATE investigator hired by a national newspaper bugged Ledbury celebrity, Liz Hurley’s home, a high court hearing has heard. 

Ms Hurley is among celebrities like Elton John and Prince Harry who have taken action against Associated Newspapers the publisher of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers over years of alleged phone tapping and privacy breaches...

David Sherborne, who was representing Ms Hurley said in the written submission that she was left feeling “shocked and mortified” by the alleged targeting. He said a private investigator, acting on behalf of the Mail on Sunday, hacked their phones, tapped landlines, placed “a sticky window mini-microphone on the exterior of her home window” and bugged Mr (Hugh) Grant’s car to obtain “private communications with Mr Grant, her financial details, her travel arrangements and medicals during her pregnancy and birth of her son”. more

High profile individuals commonly have their homes, vehicles and aircraft swept for bugs.

Arizona Bill to Make Drone Spying a Crime Moves Forward

AZ - State lawmakers are moving to ensure people don’t get too nosy with their new drones.

In a party-line vote on Wednesday, members of the House Commerce Committee approved legislation that would make it a criminal offense to intentionally photograph, tape or otherwise observe someone else in a private place where that person has a “reasonable expectation of privacy.”

The only thing is that there hasn’t been a consensus as to when exactly someone crosses that line. more