One Way Corporate Espionage Spies Cover Their Tracks

Residential proxy IP: The invisible cloak in corporate espionage.
From the IP vendor's ad...

"In the fiercely competitive business battlefield, information is power, and how to obtain and use this information has become a problem that every company needs to face. In this spy war without gunpowder, residential proxy IP is like an invisible cloak, providing strong protection and support for enterprises.

Imagine that you are an intelligence analyst at an emerging technology company, and your task is to collect and analyze the latest developments of competitors so that the company can make more informed decisions. However, the online world is not a smooth road, and your IP address can easily expose your true identity and intentions, making your actions subject to various restrictions. At this time, residential proxy IP is like a capable assistant, helping you to move forward invisibly in this spy war.

Residential proxy IP, as the name suggests, is to use the IP address of an ordinary home network environment for network access. Because these IP addresses come from real home users, they are difficult to identify and track. By using residential proxy IP, enterprises can hide their real IP address and avoid being discovered by competitors or network monitoring agencies. In this way, enterprises can access target websites, crawl data, analyze competitors' strategies, etc. more freely without worrying about being blocked by anti-crawler mechanisms or IP being blocked." more

Corporate Espionage: Steward Health Care Deployed Spy Outfits to Thwart Critics

Despite its financial turmoil and eventual bankruptcy, Steward Health Care allegedly spent millions spying on its adversaries, hiring intelligence companies to track and intimidate critics worldwide.

In what resembles a poorly written spy novel, Steward's leadership hired agents who placed tracking devices on the car of a financial analyst, accessed a healthcare executive’s phone to potentially blackmail him and circulated an allegedly false wire transfer to frame a politician, a report said.

The videos and documents with the incriminating details were obtained by journalism outfit the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and shared with the Boston Globe, who investigated the case further.

According to reporters, Steward executives who deployed these intelligence firms prioritized paying their bills over all others, including invoices from vendors and suppliers. Monthly expenses for intelligence services reached as high as $440,000, and from 2019 to 2023, Steward allocated over $7 million to these operations.

As to the legality of all of this, because the spying and fraud took place in various jurisdictions globally, it may not be possible to prosecute anyone responsible. more

The Devil Wears Prada - So Do Spies

Former Government Official Arrested For Acting As Unregistered Agent Of South Korean Government

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA and White House employee, subverted foreign agent registration laws in order to provide South Korean intelligence officers with access, information, and advocacy. 

Terry allegedly sold out her positions and influence to the South Korean government in return for luxury handbags, expensive meals, and thousands of dollars of funding for her public policy program. 

 The charges brought should send a clear message to those in public policy who may be tempted to sell their expertise to a foreign government to think twice and ensure you are in accordance with the law.” more

‘His cameras are everywhere’

Clients worry as Martinsville security camera installer investigated for spying...
The owner of a Martinsville security company was in court Friday, facing child pornography charges, including images he may have taken himself. Adam R. Anderson, 42, is pleading not guilty to these felony counts. Court documents reveal he’s also under investigation for allegedly spying on clients using his security systems.

Holly Clark signed up for Anderson Video Security and Alarm LLC after her garage was broken into a few years ago. Holly Clark signed up for Anderson Video Security and Alarm LLC after her garage was broken into a few years ago.

After meeting with tech experts, Clark said she believes he may still have ownership and access to the cameras within his company.

“The thing is, it’s not just me,” she said. “He put cameras in at the library, the city pool, and has allegations of child porn. Do you want his cameras at the city pool? His cameras are everywhere.”

Clark said she and other customers are considering a class action lawsuit against Anderson to get sole ownership of the installed security systems. more

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