Peter Sichel was a shrewd observer, a skill that served him as both spy and marketing genius.
As a U.S. intelligence officer in occupied Berlin in the aftermath of World War II, the German-Jewish immigrant put Western fears to rest when he concluded that the Soviet Union did not intend to launch a military invasion of West Germany.
Later, after he’d grown disenchanted with espionage, Sichel took over his family’s wine business. Realizing that most Americans in the late 1950s had little knowledge of wine, he determined that they’d be drawn to something simple. He chose Blue Nun, a slightly sweet German white his family had been making since the 1920s, and the brand became ubiquitous. At its peak in 1984, it sold 30 million bottles... more
Well-known CEOs and executives aren’t the only potential victims of hacks and threats from criminals. Board directors also have to be vigilant, according to Jason Lish, the global chief information security officer at Cisco.
“Often times they’re targets, especially for public companies, where their profiles are out there,” he said during a virtual conversation on Thursday hosted by Fortune in partnership with Diligent for The Modern Board series.
Lish added that he’s even seen an increase in the mailing of physical ransom letters to board directors and company executives. “How do they stay protected in their personal lives?” he said. “Because threat actors will try to do reconnaissance.” more
A potential security issue has been discovered by cybersecurity researchers that has the capability to affect more than one billion devices.
According to researchers at the cybersecurity firm Tarlogic, a hidden command has been found coded into a bluetooth chip installed in devices around the world. This secret functionality can be weaponized by bad actors and, according to the researchers, used as an exploit into these devices.
Using these commands, hackers could impersonate a trusted device and then connect to smartphones, computers, and other devices in order to access information stored on them. Bad actors can continue to utilize their connection to the device to essentially spy on users. more
A Chinese spy balloon that crossed over the United States in 2023 was packed with American technology that could have enabled it to spy on Americans, according to two sources with direct knowledge of a technical analysis conducted by the U.S. military.
The discovery of a satellite communication module, sensors and other tech from at least five American firms underlines the failure of U.S. efforts to restrict exports of technology that could have military uses to main adversary China as well as to countries such as Russia and Iran. It also raises questions over the role of private companies that sell their equipment globally in keeping control over the ultimate users of dual-use technology that can have defense applications as well as civilian uses.
A Chinese patent reviewed by Newsweek describes a communications system for exactly such a balloon as the one that crossed America, based on using a satellite transceiver from a U.S. company that the balloon’s controllers in China would use to communicate with it and that would send data back, and that is easily available online. more
Flock Safety, a maker of license plate-reading cameras, is said to be valued at $7.5 billion — a 56% increase from a year ago — in a funding round to be led by Andreessen Horowitz. The startup plans to raise $250 million. more
Not everyone is thrilled, and the courts have not weighted in yet. When they do, it will be boom or bust.
Conference Dates Tuesday May 06, 2025 to Thursday May 08, 2025 Arrival Monday May 05, 2025
Conference Venue Banff Centre for Professional Development Kinnear Centre for Innovation 107 Tunnel Mountain Drive, Banff, Alberta Canada T1L 1H5
Conference Theme: The Future of Technical Security: Adapting to a Changing Threat Landscape Defensive resources, tools, countermeasures, and technologies are available. That is why, you need to attend the Canadian Technical Security Conference to hone an up-to-date awareness of the threat environment, countermeasures, tools and a better understanding how to make the best use of them. Moreover, not only will you learn from experts but you can become part of a community that pulls together against the threat operators to share information and best practices.
From 2017, Scott Pelley’s interview with an FBI undercover agent who infiltrated Al Qaeda and helped thwart several terrorist attacks.
From 2011, Anderson Cooper’s report on FBI agent Lin Vecchio, who helped put away several notorious Mafia leaders, but also faced murder charges due to his association with an informant.
From 2017, Sharyn Alfonsi’s report on the use of jailhouse informants in Orange County, California.
From 2015, Steve Kroft’s report on Jack Barsky, a KGB spy from the Soviet Union who lived for decades in the United States without being detected.
From 2019, Pelley’s talk with a former American member of Al-Qaeda who provided valuable intelligence in order to avoid jail.
From 2001, Lesley Stahl’s report on Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent who was convicted of spying for Russia.
From 2024, Cecilia Vega’s report on the Americans spying for Cuba in the U.S.
From 2015, Stahl’s investigation into the controversial use of young confidential informants by law enforcement in dangerous and sometimes deadly drug cases.
From 2010, Pelley’s report on a Defense Department employee caught on tape selling secrets to a Chinese spy.
From 2022, Jon Wertheim's story on the Ritchie Boys, the secret U.S. unit bolstered by German-born Jews who helped the Allies beat Hitler.
From 2018, Cooper’s interview with Justice and FBI officials who reveal how they caught a former CIA officer spying for the Chinese.
And from 2017, Kroft’s interview with British author John Le Carré who has written several best-selling spy thrillers under the pen name David Cornwell. more
• 519 voyeurism cases were reported last year — a 9% rise.
• Over 30% of the incidents occurred in victims' own homes.
• Physical crime cases in Singapore remained stable in 2024.
Most cases at residential premises (124 cases or 76.5%) were committed by perpetrators known to the victims (such as boyfriends/ex-boyfriends, household members or fellow tenants). Cases at shopping complexes and on the public transport network typically involved perpetrators not known to the victims.
At public transport nodes, the SPF has started initiatives to display advisory messages on voyeurism prominently on floor decals at selected MRT stations. Anti-voyeurism messages are also broadcast at all MRT stations during peak hours. The SPF has also collaborated with the Restroom Association (Singapore) to introduce security design guidelines, enhancing safety in public toilets. more
The monitor's camera was positioned directly above the crib. “Of course, he was crying a little bit, so I opened the app and turned on the audio just to keep an eye on him,” says the OP (original poster on reddit.com). “As soon as I turned on the audio, I hear a woman’s voice go, ‘Hello?’”
The OP asked their husband if there was anything in the room that talks or if the camera made noise when turning the audio on. The answers were no and no. “I go back upstairs, and as I’m opening the door to my son’s room I hear the same woman talking to my son through the camera,” the OP writes. “She said, ‘Hi baby! It’s OK!’
“Consumer Reports found that most of these models have pretty lax security and privacy and didn't earn a recommendation in our ratings,” explains Allen St. John, the content manager for baby monitors of Consumer Reports. more
His real name is Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed al Nahyan. A bearded, wiry figure who’s almost never seen without dark sunglasses.
Tahnoun is the United Arab Emirates’ national security adviser—the intelligence chief to one of the world’s wealthiest and most surveillance-happy small nations. He’s also the younger brother of the country’s hereditary, autocratic president, Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan. But perhaps most important, and most bizarrely for a spymaster, Tahnoun wields official control over much of Abu Dhabi’s vast sovereign wealth. Bloomberg News reported last year that he directly oversees a $1.5 trillion empire—more cash than just about anyone on the planet...
But in recent years, a new quest has taken up much of Sheikh Tahnoun’s attention. His onetime chess and technology obsession has morphed into something far bigger: a hundred-billion-dollar campaign to turn Abu Dhabi into an AI superpower. And the teammate he’s set out to buy this time is the United States tech industry itself. more
The rising amount of technology in our vehicles makes them increasingly vulnerable to hacking or theft.
Battery Sleuth bypasses both the wireless communication that key fobs depend on and the standardized onboard communication network in today’s vehicles. Instead, it authenticates drivers by measuring voltage fluctuations in a vehicle’s electrical system. Drivers interact with it through a keypad device plugged into the auxiliary power outlet. Learn more in this video.
“The idea of measuring fluctuations in a car’s electrical system seems simple, but designing one device that can do it accurately on thousands of different vehicle models in varying environmental conditions gets quite complicated,” said Liang He , assistant professor of computer science and engineering at the University of Colorado, Denver and a researcher on the project. “We’re working to design a system that’s smart enough to measure the parameters of the vehicle it’s installed on and then customize itself to work effectively on that vehicle.” more
Police say a Temple University student was arrested and charged after hidden cameras were found inside the bathrooms of his off-campus residence.
Authorities say 21-year-old Michael Nguyen planted three cameras disguised as pens inside the bathrooms of a residence he shared with his now former Delta Chi Psi fraternity brothers on 17th Street and Montgomery Avenue...
They say he was expelled from the fraternity “without hesitation.” more
Your Editor (not me) chanced upon the following in the library of the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich last winter and it is reprinted here by kind permission of Stephen Rabson, Group Information Manager of P&O.
The document is in the form of a quasi-official report, written by one of P&O's traveling inspectors on two voyages in 1902, one from Southampton to New York, the other from Vancouver to Yokohama.
The writer (whose signature is, alas, indecipherable) was clearly more than a passenger, he was a benevolent spy, assessing conditions aboard the competition...
"I have the honor to report my arrival here yesterday. The following details of the steamers in which I have traveled may interest you..." more
This business spy tactic has been around forever. These days corporate espionage is enhanced with electronics (audio, video, and data). This is why businesses have added Technical Surveillance Countermeasures to their security precautions. If you have not, it is highly recommended you do so. Contact a professional TSCM information security consultant to begin protecting your company.
HP Studied Spying on Newsrooms: NY Times Hewlett-Packard conducted feasibility studies on placing spies in news bureaus of two publications as part of an investigation into leaks from its board, The New York Times reported on Wednesday. Hewlett-Packard could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Times cited an individual briefed on the company's review of the operation in its report. It is not clear whether the plan described in the documents, which were read to a reporter, was ever acted upon, The Times said.
The newspaper said the feasibility studies, referred to in a February 2 draft report for a briefing of senior management, were said to have included the possibility of placing investigators acting as clerical employees or cleaning crews in the San Francisco offices of technology news Web site CNET and The Wall Street Journal.
HP is under investigation by U.S. federal prosecutors and the California attorney general over the company's potentially illegal tactics in obtaining phone records in a bid to end boardroom leaks to the media. more
Proactive eavesdropping in wireless communication systems is an emerging area of research that focuses on the interception of communications while minimizing the risk of detection.
This involves the use of advanced techniques such as jamming and intelligent reflecting surfaces to enhance the eavesdropping capabilities of legitimate monitors.
Recent studies have explored various scenarios where suspicious communications occur, and how legitimate monitors can optimize their strategies to maximize the success of eavesdropping while adhering to certain constraints. more
Note from website: This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is one of 30,000 created with generative AI and the cited references. We take care to ground generative text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process. We however cannot guarantee the accuracy of every summary and welcome feedback.
