Security Alert: Unsolicited Smartwatches Received by Mail

Service members across the military have reported receiving smartwatches unsolicited in the mail. These smartwatches, when used, have auto-connected to Wi-Fi and began connecting to cell phones unprompted, gaining access to a myriad of user data.

These smartwatches may also contain malware that would grant the sender access to saved data to include banking information, contacts, and account information such as usernames and passwords...

What to do if you receive one of these devices:

• DO NOT turn the device on.
• Report it to your local counterintelligence, security manager, or through our Submit a Tip - Report a Crime reporting portal. more

The Spying Scandal Inside One of America’s Biggest Power Companies

A private investigator surveilled Southern Co.’s CEO, prompting an internal investigation into whether it was commissioned by another executive...

On a late spring day in 2017, a private investigator parked outside a fitness center in an Atlanta strip mall and covertly recorded video of a personal trainer as she entered her business.

Forty-five minutes later, the investigator took photos as the woman returned to her car, stowed her gym bag and drove away. He next followed her for 25 minutes to the home of her then-boyfriend, Tom Fanning, who, as chief executive of Southern Co., had for years been one of the energy industry’s most powerful figures.

Atlanta-based Southern, one of the largest utility companies in the U.S. and one of the most prominent corporate brands across the Southeast, has been bedeviled for much of the past year by the peculiar espionage effort, which led to an internal investigation but no public explanation.

Word of the surveillance surfaced last summer in a lawsuit between consultants in a firm that for decades has done work for Alabama Power, a Southern subsidiary. One of them alleged that, at the direction of Alabama Power officials, the other consultant had ordered surveillance of Southern executives in order to possibly gain internal leverage. more

Nissan Installed Covert Camera to Monitor No. 2's Home

Nissan installed a camera surveillance system at the home of former executive Ashwani Gupta so the automaker's internal security team could monitor him, according to the preliminary findings of an investigation into the surveillance, two people with knowledge of the report said.

Nissan has been investigating a claim that Chief Executive Makoto Uchida carried out surveillance of the carmaker's second- in-command to acquire leverage to remove him from the company because of Gupta's opposition to some terms in a new partnership deal with Renault. more

From the What Goes Around Files: Phone Spy App Hacked

LetMeSpy, a phone tracking app spying on thousands, says it was hacked...

A data breach reveals the spyware is built by a Polish developer hacker has stolen the messages, call logs and locations intercepted by a widely used phone monitoring app called LetMeSpy, according to the company that makes the spyware.

The phone monitoring app, which is used to spy on thousands of people using Android phones around the world, said in a notice on its login page that on June 21, “a security incident occurred involving obtaining unauthorized access to the data of website users​​.”

“As a result of the attack, the criminals gained access to e-mail addresses, telephone numbers and the content of messages collected on accounts,” the notice read.

LetMeSpy is a type of phone monitoring app that is marketed for parental control or employee monitoring. The app is also specifically designed to stay hidden on a phone’s home screen, making it difficult to detect and remove. Also known as stalkerware or spouseware, these kinds of phone monitoring apps are often planted by someone — such as spouses or domestic partners — with physical access to a person’s phone, without their consent or knowledge. more

FutureWatch: Mind Reading Marches On, Maybe

At first glance, the headset is unassuming. It almost looks like a pair of oversized headphones. There’s no outward indication that it can read signals in your brain and help alter your mood. But its creator, the startup Neurosity Inc., believes it’s at the forefront of a new wave of consumer products that will literally alter customers’ state of mind. 

Neurosity is one of a growing number of new companies making hardware that can read brainwaves. ... Startups with names like Emotive Inc., InteraXon Inc. and Earable Inc. are all working on devices that use EEG to measure everything from sleep to creativity...

It’s true that it’s early days for the intersection of brains and computers. “This is a huge area, and we’re going to see more of these devices,” Welle said. “Measuring your own brain signals is a cool thing to do." more   Previous mind reading news.

Spybuster Tip #712 - Stop Smartphone Eavesdropping - Cap The App

Remember to check from time to time which apps have access to the microphone.

Here’s how to do it on iPhone:

• Open the Settings app 
• Scroll to Privacy & Security 
• Tap Microphone 
• Review the apps that have access to your microphone and toggle them on or off 

Here’s how to do it on an Android handset:

• Open the Settings app 
• Tap Privacy 
• Tap Permission Manager 
• Tap on Microphone 
• Review the apps that have access to your microphone and toggle them on or off | more

Why is this important and timely?

A hacking group linked to the North Korean government has been caught using new wiretapping malware in recent surveillance attacks, according to an advisory from cybersecurity firm AhnLab. more

The US Presidential Race Gets More Interesting

Former CIA clandestine officer and GOP Rep. Will Hurd has announced he is joining the Republican race to be president. The Texan and Donald Trump critic announced he is jumping into the growing GOP field with 14 rivals during an interview with CBS on Thursday morning. 'This is a decision that my wife and I decided to do because we live in complicated times and we need common sense,' he said. more

Man Arrested for Spying on Woman with Drone

RI - The Cranston Police Department announced a convicted sex offender was arrested for spying on a woman through her bathroom window with a drone...

Officials said the woman victim...was preparing to use the shower when she heard a buzzing noise from outside. The woman went to her back yard thinking the sound had something to do with her pool when she noticed a drone hovering outside her bathroom window. When the victim approached the drone, she said it moved quickly in an attempt to get away from her when it crashed into a tree and hit the ground...the victim disabled the drone in her pool and called 911 shortly after. more

Fishy Spy News, or Flipper Flips Sides

Russia's navy is using trained dolphins to step up security at its Sevastopol Black Sea fleet base, according to UK intelligence. The mammals are intended to "detect and counter" enemy divers, British intelligence reported.

Last month, the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries advised beachgoers to "avoid contact" with a well-known beluga whale that's suspected of being used for Russian espionage. The warning came in response to the whale's travels to a densely populated area, putting him at far greater risk of injury or death. The whale, nicknamed Hvaldimir, became famous in 2019 after it was spotted wearing a specially made harness with mounts for a camera, leading to the "Russian spy" allegations. more

China’s Corporate Spy War

CNBC Documentaries examines the case of a Chinese government spy who tried to steal secrets from some of America’s biggest companies and delves into the shadowy world of economic espionage that could endanger millions of U.S. jobs. more

A Tale of High-Stakes Corporate Espionage... a cautionary tale.

When Chinese tech giant Huawei learned it was set to lose a $200 million contract, a run-of-the-mill equipment deal spiraled into a saga of hidden microphones, drone encounters and covert surveillance, according to investigators for a Danish telecoms firm. Bloomberg reporters crisscrossed Copenhagen for the tale of TDC’s 5G showdown, in which technology, business and national security collide. more

No business is immune. Help is available. Click here. 

Corporate Espionage - Legal or Illegal? (The Full Story)

Corporate espionage, or economic or industrial espionage, involves stealing or illegally acquiring trade secrets and confidential information from a company or organization. This process, which may also include practices such as bribery, blackmail, and surveillance, is a growing concern for businesses in various industries. Companies may engage in such activities in an increasingly competitive global market to gain a competitive advantage or undermine competitors.

The legality of corporate espionage is a complex subject, as it encompasses various actions and laws depending on the jurisdiction. Corporate spying may be considered illegal under various statutes that protect intellectual property, trade secrets, and economic interests. However, there are instances where certain espionage activities may fall within legal limits, especially in cases where information is obtained from public sources or through legitimate means... more

(Now that you know, protect yourself.)

77 Industrial Espionage Arrests

South Korean police have arrested 77 people involved in 35 cases of suspected industrial espionage discovered during a recent nationwide investigation, Yonhap news agency reported on Sunday.

Most cases only involved domestic companies, although eight were related to the leak of technology secrets to China or other countries, Yonhap quoted the National Police Agency as saying...

The number of international cases was double that of a similar probe conducted one year ago, Yonhap said, citing police data. more

Blackmail with Email, or The Employer's Lawyer Destroyer

Last month, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, one of the nation’s largest law firms, was rocked by the announcement that two top partners were starting their own boutique practice and taking as many as 140 colleagues with them.

The shock inside Lewis Brisbois’ downtown Los Angeles headquarters soon gave way to anger... over the weekend, Lewis Brisbois struck back.

In an extraordinary move, its management team directed the release of scores of emails in which Barber and Ranen used vile terms for women, Black people, Armenians, Persians, and gay men and traded in offensive stereotypes of Jews and Asians. In one fell swoop, the venerable firm managed to torpedo its new rival, destroy the defecting partners’ careers and send the legal establishment reeling. more

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“Say it with flowers,

Say it with mink,

But never, ever say it with ink."

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Business Espionage: The Employee Competitor… and what to do about it

Eavesdropping: Advanced Aliens Could Detect life on Earth...

Only aliens with more advanced technology would be able to ‘eavesdrop’ on the signals transmitted on Earth – but apparently that’s more likely than you’d think.

While we work hard to search for extra-terrestrial life beyond our planet, radiation leaked from Earth’s mobile towers could be helping aliens find us. Put your tinfoil hat away: this isn’t anything to do with 5G. And the radiation being leaked isn’t the cancer-causing kind – it's the same type of energy used in radio and TV signals.

New research shows that this radio leakage from mobile towers is not currently strong enough on its own to be detectable by alien civilisations – assuming they are using the same technology as we are to find them. But if aliens have more advanced systems and are looking at radiation from more sources – such as Wi-Fi networks – we could soon be discovered by extra-terrestrials living on nearby stars. more