Security Director Alert: China Enforcing Electronic Device Inspection Law

China is enforcing a new law on Monday that allows national security authorities to inspect electronic devices on suspicion of espionage.

The Ministry of State Security is implementing the legislation that stipulates powers to crack down on spying.

The law states procedures to inspect mobile phones, personal computers and other devices of individuals and organizations. more

Lawsuit Claim: Shopping App Temu - “Dangerous Malware,” Spying on Your Texts

Temu—the Chinese shopping app that has rapidly grown so popular in the US that even Amazon is reportedly trying to copy it—is "dangerous malware" that's secretly monetizing a broad swath of unauthorized user data, Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin alleged in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

Griffin cited research and media reports exposing Temu's allegedly nefarious design, which "purposely" allows Temu to "gain unrestricted access to a user's phone operating system, including, but not limited to, a user's camera, specific location, contacts, text messages, documents, and other applications."

"Temu is designed to make this expansive access undetected, even by sophisticated users," Griffin's complaint said. "Once installed, Temu can recompile itself and change properties, including overriding the data privacy settings users believe they have in place." more

TeamViewer Confirms Cyberattack

TeamViewer, the prominent provider of remote access tools, has confirmed a significant cyberattack on its corporate network. 

This attack has been attributed to APT29, a hacking group allegedly linked to Russian intelligence. The breach, discovered on June 26, involved compromised credentials of an employee account, marking another sophisticated cyber-espionage campaign executed by state-sponsored hackers.

According to TeamViewer’s investigation, the breach began with the compromise of credentials from a standard employee account within their corporate IT environment. 

The company has emphasized that the attack was contained within its corporate network, assuring that their internal network and customer systems are separate...Despite these assurances, the company’s investigation is ongoing. more

App Slammed for Spying at Popular Nightclubs Using 'Hidden Cameras'

A new app has sparked extreme blowback after enabling users to use cameras to watch partiers at trendy nightclubs and bars across San Francisco.

2night, the startup behind the app, had hoped that the service would promote nightlife in the area, allowing users to check livestreams of the bars and clubs to determine if they had the right vibe.

But bargoers were quick to lash out after they learned that they were being recorded without their permission, with some going so far as to liken the service to 'Big Brother.' more

THOR: Disables Drone Swarm Attacks

The Department of Defense is exploring options to protect our warfighters further. Enter THOR, stage right. Tactical, High-power, Operational Responder (THOR), is a high-power microwave counter-drone weapon that the Air Force Research Lab has demonstrated for effective use against realistic targets. Watch this video to see how THOR tracks and turns off entire drone swarms. video

Bugging Did Not Pay

A mother who bugged her ex-boyfriend's car and redirected his post in a bid to get more child support is facing jail for stalking. Veronica Jackson, 44, secretly placed a tracker on Kevin McCormack's vehicle and diverted his letters to a drop-off location in a bid to prove he had a job - and could afford £200 monthly maintenance.

Jobless Mr McCormack had claimed he was only able to give £6.25 a week to help with the upkeep of the couple's 12-year-old daughter. Warrington Magistrates Court heard the pair had began a relationship in 2010 and had a daughter together in 2012, but they split up eight years later.

The court was told Mr McCormack received a series of messages from Jackson, from Macclesfield, Cheshire, showing routes he had taken to and from his home. They also included the times of the journeys and messages from Jackson saying: ''I know where you are - I know what you are doing.'' more

30 Spy Movies That Will Make You Want to Be a Secret Agent

Indeed, there are near-endless lists of spy films, but if you’re looking for the top choices, the ones that will captivate your senses, that aren’t just background noise, check out... more

Can You Name the Movie

1. A suave, smooth-talking secret agent and a a bullion dealer.
2. An elegant American interpreter living in Paris, outfitted in Givenchy.
3. In Prague, Czech Republic, a group of IMF agents.
4. A CIA intelligence analyst tracking the location of Osama bin Laden.
5. Extraterrestrials live on Earth, often wearing human shells blend into society.
6. An unnamed man is pulled out of an Italian fishing boat.
7. Joins forces with Russian agent Anya Amasova.
8. Russian operative claims that a mole named Salt plans on killing...
9. Running through the jungles of Uganda, assigned to spy on a terrorist cell.
10. During the fall of the Berlin Wall, sent to Germany to recover microfilm.
11. At the start, the villain escapes in a rocket and cryogenically freezes himself.
12. Captured by the evil TV host Fegan Floop.
13. A hard drive containing details of undercover agents was stolen.
14. Galahad, is in search of a new agent.
15. A girl living in a remote Finnish forest who is raised to be a lethal assassin.
16. They have no recollection of what their superiors said happened in Korea.
17. On vacation in London. Sees a bomb explode outside Buckingham Palace.
18. An advertising executive that is mistaken for government agent.
19. An ordinary man, at a music hall where shots are suddenly fired.
20. A mission to stop a terrorist group called the Apostles.
21. A New York lawyer enlisted by the CIA to defend a Russian spy.
22. He’s brought back to uncover a mole at the British Secret Service.
23. He is investigating the kidnapping of scientists who reappear brainwashed.
24. CIA codebreaker finds his colleagues murdered in the New York office.
25. A surveillance expert who is employed track a young couple.
26. A spy living a double life tracks nuclear rockets from jihadist Salim Abu Aziz.
27. CIA agent posing as an aid worker. Goal: enforce U.S. policies on Vietnam.
28. American daughter of a Nazi, enlisted to spy on escaped war criminals.
29. A World War II veteran charged with a superhuman serum.
30. Connects deaths to a new drug, Dypraxa. Uncovers British Intelligence.

Security Cam Shoots Paintballs Like in 'Home Alone'

This Security Camera Shoots Paintballs at Intruders.

The track-and-shoot home security cam promises action, but we spot real-world problems after its hugely successful Kickstarter.*

What happens when you combine a paintball gun with a home security cam and smart tracking? All the potential chaos of the Eve PaintCam, an ambitious crowdsourced security camera equipped with smart detection -- and a paintball firing system to mark and scare away intruders.

From creator OZ-IT on Kickstarter and elsewhere, the Eve PaintCam wants people to live out their fantasies of total property control. It even promises face detection to avoid hitting friends (or specifically to hit friends, depending on your mood). more

* Be aware that some Kickstarter projects never materialize, and its use is probably illegal where you live.

Caught on Spycam: Lawmaker Pours Water into Colleague's Bag

A Republican state legislator in Vermont awkwardly apologized on the House floor on Monday after she was caught on hidden camera repeatedly pouring water into a Democratic colleague’s tote bag. 

State Rep. Mary Morrissey said she was “truly ashamed” of childishly targeting state Rep. Jim Carroll, who dealt with a soaked bag on numerous occasions over the last several months, in what he called “torment.”

“I have given my sincere apology to Jim directly and publicly and will be working towards resolution and restoration through our legislative process,” Morrissey said in front of fellow lawmakers. more

Surveillance News in the Digital World

• AI companies, including Google and OpenAI, are intensifying their screening of new hires due to the threat of Chinese espionage. more

• MICROSOFT ADMITS THAT MAYBE SURVEILING EVERYTHING YOU DO ON YOUR COMPUTER ISN’T A BRILLIANT IDEA... After announcing a new AI feature that records and screenshots everything you do, Microsoft is now delaying its launch after widespread objections. The company broke the news in a blog post detailing its decision not to ship the feature, dubbed Recall, on new computers so that it can continue to "leverage the expertise" of its Windows Insider Program (WIP) beta-testing community. more

• Zoom wants to make sure you’re paying attention. The company filed a patent application for “scrolling motion detection” in video calls.

• Chinese Spy Tech Driving Junta Internet Crackdown: Justice For Myanmar... China supplied the spy technology and technicians that allowed Myanmar’s junta to intensify its internet surveillance and censorship late last month, Justice for Myanmar (JFM) said on Thursday, warning that China’s increased support for the junta will cost more lives. This support will allow the junta – which has imprisoned more than 25,000 people since the 2021 coup – to identify and jail more people who express dissent. more

• Canada - Public servants uneasy as government 'spy' robot prowls federal offices... A device federal public servants call "the little robot" began appearing in Gatineau office buildings in March. It travels through the workplace to collect data using about 20 sensors and a 360-degree camera, according to Yahya Saad, co-founder of GlobalDWS, which created the robot. "Using AI on the robot, the camera takes the picture, analyzes and counts the number of people and then discards the image," he said. more

Policing Minister's Wife in legal row over Claims of Corporate Espionage

A leading businesswoman who is married to the policing minister, Chris Philp, has been reported to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) by a former employer and is being sued in the high court over allegations of corporate espionage.

Elizabeth Philp, 40, whose husband has called for "zero tolerance" to all crime, is accused of data handling offences and unlawfully using "confidential information" from her former employer to set up a rival business.

She denies the allegations and is countersuing her former employer, which she accuses of cyber-attacking the website of the company she subsequently founded. more

Spybusters: Quote of the Week

“Our enemies are ancient cultures fighting for their survival, not just now but for the next thousand years.”

Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir commenting on Chinese spying on U.S. tech companies—“a huge problem.”

Summertime Blues: Pope faces investigation for ‘illegally wiretapping phones’

The Pope faces being investigated after allegedly authorised the unlawful wiretaps of phones in the sale of a London property.

The alleged authorisation is said to have taken place during a Vatican investigation into the “corrupt” sale of a €300 million property in London. 

"I’m gonna take two weeks
I’m gonna have a fine vacation
Gonna take my problems
To the United Nations..."

It comes after the legal team for British financier Raffaele Mincione filed a complaint to the UN. The complaint included details about alleged abuses that were carried out during the trial by Pope Francis.

Rodney Dixon KC, a human rights barrister, has claimed that the Pope approved for Mr Mincione’s phone to be wiretapped during the investigation into the alleged wrongdoing at the Vatican. The trial heard that the spiritual leader allowed investigators to tap phones, intercept emails and arrest anyone without approval from a judge. He made the decision based on ancient laws that the Pope had powers over these authorisations. more  sing-a-long

Beware the Spies in Disguise

Unethical hackers are often hired by companies for corporate espionage: to infiltrate the IT systems of rival organizations to steal sensitive information, trade secrets, and strategic plans. The information can provide a competitive advantage or be sold for financial gain.

Although getting in touch with these hackers is comparatively easier, they have now resorted to anonymous modes of messaging through discreet texting applications that do not store metadata. Such apps use encrypted chat rooms, which makes it difficult for authorities to trace communications.

The internet is also filled with tutorials providing step-by-step guides for many kinds of unethical hacking tasks, which are often used by tech-savvy anti-social elements.

On the other hand, hacking into social media accounts threatens the individual privacy of creators and is often used for blackmail and extortion. more

This is a major problem on LinkedIn. 

Here are some of the come-ons I receive...

• It's nice to meet new people. Can we talk?
• Hello, it's a pleasure to contact you. Your resume and skills are excellent. I hope to make friends with you.
• I am Sophia, I checked your profile. I saw that your professional field is the talent we are looking for, which will be of great help to the new project I am about to start. If you are interested. You can leave your phone number and contact information, and I will arrange a time with you for a detailed conversation and make an appointment for a telephone conference. When is it convenient for you?
• After reading your resume and work experience, I found that you are a very talented person! can we talk?
• I think your field of work is great. Can we exchange ideas and learn from each other?

Spy Tip: Remember your Stranger Danger training.

This Week in Wiretapping, Eavesdropping & Spying

• Ex-Pittsburgh police commander gets probation in wiretapping case. A former Pittsburgh police commander on Friday morning agreed to take 24 months of probation on charges that he stashed body-worn cameras in patrol cars last fall to secretly record more than a half-dozen of his own officers. more

• Secret recording of Supreme Court justices raises legal questions. Posing as a "Christian conservative" at the Supreme Court Historical Society's members-only, black-tie gala, liberal journalist and filmmaker Lauren Windsor secretly recorded her conversations with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito and Alito's wife, Martha-Ann Alito. The event was not open to journalists. more

• The producers of the James Bond movies will receive honorary Oscars at a ceremony this November, the Academy said on Wednesday, as anticipation swells for the announcement of who will next play 007. Half-siblings Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have controlled the beloved espionage franchise since 1995’s Goldeneye, having been passed the reins by Broccoli’s father Albert. more

• Is your employer spying on you? Here’s how to know for sure. For starters, workers are likely more at risk of being spied on when using company technology, such as phones or laptops. However, your device activity can also be monitored if you have company software downloaded to your personal devices, or if your personal tech is connected to the company network. more

• U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich to stand trial in Russia on charges of spying for the CIA.
The Wall Street Journal reporter, 32, has spent more than a year in pretrial detention. more

• People are Spying on Travis Kelce's Missouri Home on Google Earth It's not easy being Kansas City Chief Travis Kelce. Oh, wait. It probably kind of is. Still, it's a little odd that many people seem to be spying on Travis Kelce's Kansas City, Missouri mansion on Google Earth. more