Karma Files: Data Breach Exposes Millions of mSpy Spyware Customers

A data breach at the phone surveillance operation mSpy has exposed millions of its customers who bought access to the phone spyware app over the past decade, as well as the Ukrainian company behind it.

Unknown attackers stole millions of customer support tickets, including personal information, emails to support, and attachments, including personal documents, from mSpy in May 2024. While hacks of spyware purveyors are becoming increasingly common, they remain notable because of the highly sensitive personal information often included in the data, in this case about the customers who use the service.

The hack encompassed customer service records dating back to 2014, which were stolen from the spyware maker’s Zendesk-powered customer support system.

mSpy is a phone surveillance app that promotes itself as a way to track children or monitor employees. Like most spyware, it is also widely used to monitor people without their consent. more

FutureWatch: Eavesdropping on the Mind Gets One Step Closer to Reality

Mind-reading AI just got real! Researchers have created a revolutionary system that can recreate what you're looking at with amazing accuracy. And it’s works by only reading brain activity! 

This cutting-edge tech uses advanced algorithms to focus on the most important brain signals, allowing it to reconstruct images with uncanny precision. Imagine a future where you can control devices with your mind, upload memories to the cloud, or even communicate with others telepathically - this brings us one step closer to making it a reality! (via There's An AI For That)

Previously on Security Scrapbook.

Trinidad and Tobago: Bombshell Report on Elite Spy Unit

An audit into the Strategic Services Agency (SSA), one of key weapons in the state’s arsenal in the fight against crime, found it was being run under the influence of a religious cult comprising highly-trained military operators, armed to the teeth with the latest weaponry, on a treasonous mission to overthrow the Government.

In a bombshell statement in Parliament on July 3, the head of the National Security Council (NSC), Dr Rowley, revealed for the first time details of the audit done by acting director of the SSA retired Brig Gen Anthony Phillips-Spencer, which painted an alarming state of affairs that went undetected for years under the current PNM administration.

The SSA is authorised to intercept communications, phone calls, WhatsApp, e-mails and other modes after obtaining court orders under the Interception of Communication Act. It was first established in 1995 primarily “to guide the formulation and implementation of national policies on illicit trafficking of dangerous drugs and related criminal activities.” more

• Cult infiltrates Trinidad's elite spy agency in shocking coup plot

Silicon Valley Steps Up Screening on Chinese Employees to Counter Espionage

Leading U.S. technology companies reportedly have increased security screening of employees and job applicants, which experts say is necessary to counter the cyber espionage threat from China.

While the enhanced screening is being applied to employees and applicants of all races, those with family or other ties to China are thought to be particularly vulnerable to pressure from the Beijing government.

But at least one Chinese computer science graduate student at a U.S. university is hoping to make his ties to China an asset. Zheng, who does not want to reveal his first name for fear of retaliation from the Chinese government, says he recently changed his focus to cybersecurity in hopes of improving his job prospects in the United States. more

US Aims To ‘Disrupt’ Chinese Spy Station In Cuba

U.S. officials say they hope to “disrupt” a Chinese intelligence gathering operation allegedly based in Cuba after a Washington think tank released satellite images it said showed the construction of a spy base capable of surveilling a nearby American naval base.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies on Monday released a report alleging that Cuba in 2021 let China construct spy facilities on “the doorstep of the United States” that would allow Beijing to monitor air and maritime traffic up to 9,000 miles (14,500 kms) away by using radar.

At a press briefing on Tuesday, U.S. State Department principal deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said officials had already “talked about this a little bit more than a year ago” when reports of a Chinese base in Cuba nearly derailed a trip to Beijing by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. more

Tracking Devices Stymie Political Sign Thefts

Political candidates have a new campaign expense: Apple AirTags.

The button-size geotracking device has become a popular tool in the rough-and-tumble world of local elections, where lawn signs often end up stolen, vandalized or run over. Candidates who have grown tired of dirty tricks are hiding AirTags in their signs, leading to digital dragnets when they go missing.

Tracking the device’s pings has led to the doorsteps of alleged sign snatchers and, in some cases, candidates’ opponents. The stings have left snatchers dumbfounded. Some have faced charges of theft, criminal mischief and receiving stolen property.

“I just wanted it to stop,” John Dittmore said of why he got an AirTag after several of his campaign signs vanished over three days in May. more

• Councilman arrested for theft after rivals put tracking device on political signs

• Tracking device helps find stolen campaign signs in Brevard County

• Apple AirTag Used To Find Over 100 Stolen Democratic Campaign Signs, Police Say

Sports: Germany Uses 1980's Pop Music to Prevent Rivals Spying

Staff at Germany’s European Championship training base have begun playing loud music on their mobile phones in an apparent attempt to stop spies eavesdropping on their tactical sessions.

Reporters from Bild have chronicled how they were followed by two men while walking near the perimeter of the Adidas site in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, on Wednesday, one of which was holding a phone blaring out the title song to a children’s television series (sing-a-long) and a song by a 1980s pop duo.

As well as the theme tune to Benjamin Blümchen, the unidentified individuals also played Cheri Cheri Lady by Modern Talking, much to the reporters’ bemusement. (sing-a-long)

The deployment of such extreme measures, apparently in order to drown out any instructions Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann and his coaches may issue to his squad, coincided with the build-up to the country’s crunch Euro 2024 quarter-final against Spain on Friday. more

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.