Tin Foil Hats - When it is Not All in Your Mind

Tin Foil Hats - When it is Not All in Your Mind

FBI Lab Will Get to the ‘Guts’ of Chinese Balloon

The US has finished work to recover sunken remnants of the Chinese balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina and the debris reinforces that it was for spying, officials have said.

The White House national security spokesman, John Kirby, said the wreckage included “electronics and optics” but declined to say what the US had learned from it so far.

“It’s a significant amount [of recovered material], including the payload structure as well as some of the electronics and the optics, and all that’s now at the FBI laboratory in Quantico,” Kirby said. more

Corporate Espionage: ASML Claims Employee Stole Chip Secrets–Sold them to China

ASML has a monopoly over the global semiconductor industry, and has currently restricted the sale of its machinery to China. 

ASML claims that in an episode of corporate espionage, an employee stole their chip manufacturing secrets and sold it to China...

Based on its preliminary investigations, ASML believes that the misappropriated data will not have a negative impact on its current operations, although it concedes that some “export control requirements” may have been breached. ASML has subsequently disclosed the data breach to the appropriate authorities, and it is “implementing further corrective steps in light of this event.” more

'Rabbit Hole' Clip Shows Kiefer Sutherland as a Mastermind of Corporate Espionage

A lengthy new clip has been released for Paramount+'s upcoming spy thriller series, Rabbit Hole...

Rabbit Hole stars Kiefer Sutherland as John Weir, a master manipulator who helps corrupt corporate businesses...

This scene shows how the series will be a diabolical foray into corporate espionage. more

Green Bay City Hall Surveillance Recording

FOX 11 has obtained 90 minutes of video and audio from Green Bay City Hall’s surveillance system, which has been the subject of controversy and accusations of invasion of privacy.

...obtained the city hall surveillance recordings through an open records request...to confirm Green Bay’s use of audio surveillance at city hall...

Green Bay city administrators have said they installed microphones for safety reasons. However, some city council members and outside attorneys claim the surveillance violates state and federal laws...

In the last week, the city denied requests to disable the microphones and delete any recordings...

One party consent is the law in Wisconsin. more

Whose Fingering Who in Spying This Week

• Netherlands Gives Russian Diplomats the Boot After Accusations of Spying more

• AI Can Be Used in Spying, Cost US Jobs, Experts Warn more

• Forget balloons. Are the Chinese spying on everyone through regular surveillance cameras? more

• Pakistan releases Bhil tribal imprisoned for 'spying' on nuclear facility for India more

• Russia launches criminal case against American, alleges ‘biological’ spying more

• Blinken says US has ‘no doubt’ China was conducting surveillance with balloon more

• ‘No apology’ from China over spy balloon: Blinken more

• Ex-KGB spy gives lesson in Soviet-style seduction more

• Gen. Keane: China spy craft shows how serious Beijing is in achieving ‘regional and global domination” more

Andrew Tate and the Wiretaps

The controversial social media personality Andrew Tate was carted off by Romanian police in December 2022 and accused of sex trafficking and organized crime. However, new wiretaps show that 2 women framed him and his brother Tristan Tate after infiltrating their lives and involving the embassy...

It's unclear what exactly is going on with Tate's charges in Romania and nobody knows whether these wiretap revelations will have an impact on his case moving forward. His fans wait impatiently for the outcome while the many people who dislike him continue to rejoice that he is behind bars. more

Spy History: The "Detective Dictograph"

The General Acoustic Company in New York manufactured and sold the "Detective Dictograph" which they patented in 1907--only ten years after Marconi's first successful transatlantic radio transmission.

The "Detective Dictograph" was a neat suitcase with a complete covert electronic audio surveillance system, which included a special carbon microphone for concealment and a long cable to run to the suitcase where the operator would covertly monitor the audio on headphones in the next room.

Yes, people were electronically bugging other people over 100 years ago.

NLRB vs. Employer Surveillance of Employees

A significant concern for managers of remote workers is the ability to engage, manage and monitor performance and productivity – and some healthcare employers have turned to technologies like tracking employee keystrokes, capturing screenshots, and on-camera requirements for employees during work hours.

This has caught the attention of the National Labor Relations Board’s General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, who recently issued a memorandum seeking to broaden of the National Labor Relations Act (the “Act”) and limit the electronic surveillance of employees...

Under well-established law, an employer can be found to violate Section 8(a)(1) of the Act if it implements new monitoring technologies in response to union and other protected activity, uses existing technologies to discover such protected activity, including by reviewing security-camera footage or employees’ social-media accounts; or creates the impression that it is doing such things. more

Possible New Exception to the All Party Consent Wiretap Law

Maryland is currently considering Senate Bill 749, permitting a person to intercept wire, oral, or electronic communication under certain circumstances. The bill was introduced on February 6, 2023, and has been assigned to the Judicial Proceedings Committee. If passed, the bill would amend the existing law prohibiting the interception of any communication without the consent of the parties involved.

Currently, Maryland law states that any person who willfully intercepts or discloses wire, oral, or electronic communication without the consent of the parties involved is guilty of a felony and is subject to imprisonment for up to five years or a fine of up to $10,000 or both. However, Senate Bill 749 would provide an exception to this law, allowing a person to intercept communication without the consent of the parties involved if the person reasonably believes they are in imminent danger of becoming a victim of certain crimes.

The proposed amendment to the law would allow a person to intercept communication if they reasonably believe they are in imminent danger of becoming the victim of a crime of violence, stalking, abuse, or a violation of a protective order. more

The Missing "Key Fob" That Made a Lt. Col. Sweat

An Army officer who leads ROTC at California Polytechnic State University faces criminal charges after a preteen girl found a recording device reportedly belonging to the officer and allegedly containing secretly captured images from multiple retail store dressing rooms.

Police claim Lt. Col. Jacob Sweatland, 39, called the store in Pismo Beach, California, asking whether anyone had found what he called his “key fob.”

Police were investigating the matter after a preteen girl found the device — and local law enforcement reviewed the contents of the device, which included images from dressing rooms from multiple stores. more

Patent: Adding a Camera to the Apple Watch

Apple was granted a new patent for a detachable watch-based camera retention system...

This new strap-based system is hardly Apple's first attempt at patenting watch-based camera functionality. In 2019, the company was awarded US-10331083-B1 for a watch band with an integrated, flexible optical sensor. If made available, this rotatable camera would allowing photos to be taken without the need to remove the watch from the user's wrist...

While a high-quality embedded camera could have practical use for some, it does raise potential privacy and security concerns for others.

The ability to capture photos covertly by removing the need for a larger, handheld camera or phone opens the door to anything from secret, unauthorized, and compromising photos to increased risk of corporate espionage. 

The embedded cameras would require a new level of security and awareness to ensure they were not improperly used in areas such as schools, locker rooms, restrooms, or in areas where confidential documents and information are at risk of being captured. more

Believe It or Not: Phone Company Not Taking a Customer's Money

South Africa: Police can’t pay network provider Vodacom for spying services, hampering crime-fighting efforts.

Efforts by the SA Police Service to fight crime were hampered after cellphone network provider Vodacom cut services, such as assisting in locating, intercepting calls and eavesdropping on calls and messages for all the network’s subscribers.

Crime intelligence requires cellphone network providers to spy on criminal suspects so that evidence can be obtained through a call interception process. more

Teacher Taps Her Way Into Their Hearts

PA - Wiretapping Charges - A Laurel Highlands High School teacher is accused of recording a student without his permission and sending the video to another student.

Ashley Thurby-Kolesar, 33, of Uniontown, faces felony charges of intercepting communications, disclosing intercepted communications and criminal use of a communication facility.

According to the criminal complaint, state police began an investigation into Thurby-Kolesar in mid-January amid concerns she was having an inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old student. more  video

Corporate Espionage Can Be Very Cost-Effective (if undetected)

UK - A traffic clerk at a London warehouse was asked to leak confidential corporate information to a rival in exchange for a £50 payment from a delivery driver, according to an extraordinary corporate espionage claim lodged in the High Court. 

In the claim filed last week, Sheffield-based logistics firm Tuffnells alleged that DX Group employees Tom Middlewood, Jim Sinden and Joe Trappitt — all former employees of Tuffnells — conspired to obtain daily customer service reports. more You may also want to read: The Employee Competitor… and what to do about it

Spy History: Life Imitates Art - The Shoe Bug

...The discovery of a “shoe bug” then prompted SY (US State Department - Division of Security) to modify its ACRs (Acoustic Conference Room)...

In 1969, Harry G. Barnes, Jr., Deputy Chief of Mission in Bucharest, Romania, called a classified conference, which met in the “bubble.” SY officer Lou Grob was monitoring the meeting from another room and heard the conversation. He immediately informed the Administration Officer (the RSO’s superior) that there was a bug in the ACR. After searching, they found something resembling Don Adams’s “shoe phone” from the 1960s television series Get Smart!--the bug was located in the heel of Barnes’s shoe. 

Barnes had had the butler take his shoes out to be modified, and someone had installed the bug in the process. After this incident, SY officers covered ACRs with Reynolds plastic wrap to reduce the radiation of low-power devices such as shoe bugs until the proper security modifications could be made. more  "Psst... Wanna buy some spy shoes? Click this."

Balloon Incident Reveals More Than Spying

There is nothing new about superpowers spying on one another, even from balloons. But for pure gall, there was something different this time...

It may be months before American intelligence agencies can compare the audacious flight of a Chinese surveillance balloon across the country to other intrusions on America’s national security systems, to determine how it ranks.

After all, there is plenty of competition.

There was the theft of the designs of the F-35 about 15 years ago, enabling the Chinese air force to develop its own look-alike stealth fighter, with Chinese characteristics. There was the case of China’s premier hacking team lifting the security clearance files for 22 million Americans from the barely secured computers of the Office of Personnel Management in 2015. That, combined with stolen medical files from Anthem and travel records from Marriott hotels, has presumably helped the Chinese create a detailed blueprint of America’s national security infrastructure...

Not surprisingly, now it is coveted by military and intelligence officials who desperately want to reverse-engineer whatever remains the Coast Guard and the Navy can recover. more

Extra Credit: Spy vs Spy: A brief history of balloon spying & Thaddeus S. C. Lowe

NY AG Spikes Spyware

The New York Office of the Attorney General has announced punitive measures against Patrick Hinchy and 16 of the companies he owns, for illegally promoting spyware.

Since 2011, Hinchy has owned and operated numerous companies, including the 16 investigated by the New York OAG, for selling and promoting spyware targeting Android and iOS devices, including Auto Forward, Easy Spy, DDI Utilities, Highster Mobile, PhoneSpector, Surepoint, and TurboSpy.

Once installed on victim devices, the spyware would collect and exfiltrate data such as call logs, text messages, photos, videos, emails, Chrome browser data, location, and data from messaging and social media applications, including WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

The spyware was sold to ‘customers’ looking to spy on their spouse, colleagues, or other individuals, and was installed on the victims’ devices without their knowledge and without notifying them of the data collection and exfiltration activities...

Collected data, the New York OAG has discovered, was being transmitted in an insecure manner, which exposed it to potential cyberattacks and snooping...

The New York OAG fined Hinchy and his companies $410,000 in penalties and ordered them to modify the software so that it would notify device owners of the data collection activities. more

AT&T Goes to the Dogs... or, Fetch 5GK9

AT&T has partnered with Ghost Robotics to test the many use cases of a fleet of 5G-connected robotic dogs in public safety and first response...

Surveillance
One use case involved robotic dogs with wireless network-connected cameras that were deployed at military bases for patrol. At Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, video feeds in real-time are sent to base personnel who always track activity on the base.

This same robotic dog could be used in commercial use cases either indoors or outdoors to patrol the perimeter of structures such as warehouses, logistics facilities, shopping malls or fleet centers. more

Workers Foil Bosses’ Surveillance Attempts

Companies tracking employees’ productivity run up against inventive workarounds.

Lisa Crawford... is wary of her computer falling asleep when she gets up to throw in a load of laundry...Her solution? Sloth TV, a live-cam of a Costa Rican wildlife rescue ranch...Ms. Crawford pulls up the stream on a second monitor. Her computer stays awake...

Mr. Dewan had learned that his computer wouldn’t go to sleep or mark him as “idle” during a presentation...

Mr. Abbas wrapped the cord of his computer mouse around a rotating desk fan. Its motion kept the mouse moving and prevented his computer from shutting down. “I logged on, went to the gym,” he says.

For workers who aren’t as handy, mouse jigglers are for sale on Amazon. “Push the button when you’re getting up from your desk and the cursor travels randomly around the screen—for hours, if needed!” says one review. more

How IBM Trolled East German Spies

In the late 1960's IBM knew its technology was being smuggled into Communist block countries. One designer decided to sent a message etched into one of the circuit boards of the IBM 360 computer. Written in Russian, the message loosely translates to, "When do you want to stop to swipe. Own design is better."

more

Thanks to one of our readers... Hi Kevin,
Your latest post incorrectly states the name of the U.S. company whose semiconductor engineers put a hidden message in their computers for GDR's Stasi semiconductor spies to see. I said "DEC" in my email because that was the name of Digital Equipment Corporation--not IBM.

Also, the message wasn't "etched into one of the circuit boards of the IBM 360 computer", as you stated--it was microscopically etched onto the silicon die of a DEC memory chip that was used in DEC (not IBM) computers, and could only be seen after someone used acid to dissolve the chip packaging to expose the die for reverse-engineering. I thought all that would be clear to you from the video, so I didn't belabor it.

You might want to correct that info on your website.

Cheers,

Attorney's Wiretap Claims Against Old Firm To Continue

Vrdolyak Law Group LLC must face a proposed class action alleging it recorded the conversations and phone calls of employees without their consent in violation of the Federal Wiretap Act and state laws, a federal court ruled.

Plaintiff Daniel Alholm timely filed his state and federal wiretapping claims against the law firm, Judge Mary M. Rowland of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said Tuesday.

Rowland rejected the firm’s argument that Alholm filed the wiretapping claims after the two-year statute of limitations had run, and denied its motion to dismiss as to those claims. She also dismissed Alholm’s fraud claims against the firm, but affirmed that the court would exercise supplemental jurisdiction over his state law misappropriation of likeness claims.

Alholm alleged that the firm surveilled employees in both its Chicago and Nashville offices, recorded conference calls and employees’ individual calls, and made unethical management and financial decisions. more

Moral: If you are a business that needs to record workplace activity, consult with a law firm that knows the local laws, first.

Cautionary Tale: Secreted Cell Phones

UK - Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker has laughed off the moment sex noises transmitted by a YouTube prankster disrupted the show's live coverage.

Noises from a porn clip were heard as Lineker presented pre-match build-up before the Wolves v Liverpool fixture.

A frenzied studio hunt uncovered a planted mobile phone - and YouTube prankster Daniel Jarvis claimed he was behind the stunt on Tuesday's show. The BBC apologised to any viewers who were offended.

But Lineker, who later tweeted a picture of the mobile phone he said was "taped to the back of the set", said he thought there was nothing to apologise for. Calling it a "good prank", he said: "As sabotage goes it was quite amusing." more

In another environment a hidden cell phone could well have been used as an eavesdropping bug. 

We're not talking expensive iPhones here. Cheap, mini-sized phones can do the job too. Short-term, quick-drop, and expendable. Another good reason to conduct Technical Surveillance Countermeasures inspections in corporate offices and conference rooms.

Spybuster Tip #823 - Remote Control Duplicators

Never let your door / gate opener fob out of your control.

Here's why... Anyone (service person, neighbor, guest, valet, etc.) only needs to have access to your fob for a few seconds to make one for themselves.

Fob duplicators are cheap, available and easy to use... (more detailed version here)

Videos About Spy Cameras

Berning Robot SC Electronic 35mm camera

Serial number 0-01486. Schneider Xenagon 30mm lens, for covert uses. This 35mm camera manufactured in the 1980s takes images 16x16mm in size on its own small diameter cassettes which allow 40 monochrome or 35 colour images to be taken (colour film being thicker than black and white, hence the different capacities). The camera has an interchangeable back, eliminating the need for rewinding film in camera. The camera uses a TTL metering system. The lens has a fixed f5.6 aperture, which allows shutter speeds to be set between 4 and 1/500 of a second. Manual settings are possible. Images can be shot at the rate of one frame every 1.5 seconds. The slowness of the motorised wind on minimises the noise of the camera operationally. Various shutter release mechanisms are known, both mechanical and electronic, including radio control. Mossad allegedly developed an infra-red pulse controlled shutter release. Purported to have been designed to the specifications of the Israeli intelligence service, the camera was intended for covert surveillance. Both its size being around the size of a cigarette packet and its silent operation make it very suitable. It was also certainly used by the East German STASI and other intelligence agencies. The size of the camera lends itself to use in a variety of concealments. Examples evidenced include Sony ‘Walkman’ cassette players, books and handbags. A high quality button frontage for the lens exists. This model comes with an adapted bag concealment, where the lens shoots through a decorative metal emblem on the side of the bag and the shutter is fired by a concealed button. and many more videos from spycamerasaurus, @spycamerasaurus3745

Corporate Espionage: Newly Identified Hacker Group - Dark Pink

A newly identified hacker group Dark Pink attacked seven high profile targets, including government and military institutions, in Southeast Asia and Europe from June to December 2022, Russian cybersecurity company Group-IB said.

The main goal of the hacker group is corporate espionage, as criminals are trying to steal documents and record sounds from the electronic devices of the victims, the Russian cybersecurity firm said.

The hackers sent their victims email messages containing a link to a website, according to the statement. When the victim clicked on this link, a malicious file was downloaded, which then stole personal information from devices, including passwords, browser history, and data from Viber and Telegram. more

A Bad Week for Spies

Armenia - A serviceman of the Defense Army of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, the National Security Service (NSS) of Artsakh said Friday. The suspect has been charged with treason and taken into custody after a court approved pre-trial remand. more

Taiwan - Punishments for spying too lenient: lawyers

Two former military officers indicted on Chinese espionage offenses received sentences that were lighter than a drunk driving charge despite having betrayed the nation, lawyers and a government spokesman said yesterday. Attorney Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎), chairman of the Taiwan Forever Association, said the pair were found guilty of espionage, but do not need to serve time in prison. “In effect, the judges are encouraging people to spy for China by handing out such lenient terms,” Huang said. more

Meanwhile...

Iran - Dual British-Iranian Ex-Official Sentenced To Death Over Spying For UK’s MI6

The Iranian judiciary sentenced a dual British-Iranian citizen and former official Alireza Akbari to death on charges of spying for the British intelligence agency. more

USA - Spy agencies report hundreds more UFO sightings since 2021

National security agencies are studying hundreds of new reports of UFOs, including many that appear to perform maneuvers that are highly advanced, the nation’s top intelligence official reported on Thursday. In total, 510 “unidentified aerial phenomena” observed in protected airspace or near sensitive facilities have been compiled as of August of last year, according to the report to Congress from the director of national intelligence. more

USA - US spies lag rivals in seizing on data hiding in plain sight

As alarms began to go off globally about a novel coronavirus spreading in China, officials in Washington turned to the intelligence agencies for insights about the threat the virus posed to America. But the most useful early warnings came not from spies or intercepts, according to a recent congressional review of classified reports from December 2019 and January 2020. Officials were instead relying on public reporting, diplomatic cables and analysis from medical experts — some examples of so-called open source intelligence, or OSINT. more

USA - Campaign to Renew US Spy Powers Faces Bitter Battle in Congress

The US intelligence community faces a hard battle to renew foreign surveillance powers that have enabled authorities to repeatedly access private information about Americans despite constitutional protections. The Biden administration wants to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a warrantless wiretapping program introduced in 2008, which was last renewed in 2018 and is due to expire at the end of the year. “Without Section 702, we will lose critical insights into the most significant threats to our nation,” said General Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency, in a speech launching the Biden ... more

USA - Silicon Valley firm sues spy agency over software contract
Nearly seven years after Palantir forced the Army to consider buying its software instead of developing a bespoke system, a Silicon Valley firm is again taking the Defense Department to court over allegedly ignoring commercial products. Santa Clara, California-based Percipient.AI filed suit in the Court of Federal Claims on Monday, claiming the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is violating a law requiring agencies to buy commercially available products when possible. more

Iran - Belgian aid worker sentenced to 40 years in prison, 74 lashes
A court in Tehran has sentenced a Belgian aid worker to four decades in prison and 74 lashes after convicting him on espionage and smuggling charges. According to Iran's Tasnim News Agency, Olivier Vandercasteele was found guilty on four charges: "spying activities, collusion with the United States, currency smuggling and money laundring." more

Mexico - Seventh former Mexico City government official arrested for espionage
The Mexico City Attorney General’s Office has captured a seventh person accused of being a spy in the Sterling Case. On Wednesday, authorities in Mexico City arrested Jorge “N” from city streets. He is the seventh former official of the Mexico City government to be charged in the espionage network. He was picked up Wednesday on an outstanding arrest warrant. Six others before him, all also former government officials, have already been arrested and charged. more

S. Korea - North Korean spy ring uncovered
The counter-espionage authorities are said to be investigating an officer of a progressive party and two others on Jeju Island in relation to suspicions they have been spying for North Korea. It is the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s first known investigation of a spy ring acting for Pyongyang. more

Australia - Chinese Spy who exposed CCP regime on television denied asylum in Australia
A Chinese spy Wang Liqiang aged 32 who came on Australian media’s Nine now television’ show 60 minutes in 2019 confessed to being a spy of Beijing, has now been denied asylum in Australia. This exposes him to being deported back to China. more

Germany - Berlin: Eternal espionage hotspot
Nowhere else did the secret services of East and West clash as closely as in this city on the frontlines of the Cold War. Arts Un-veiled delves into the shadows of Berlin and uncovers incredible stories from ex-agents. video

The 2023 “Chinese Espionage Wall Calendar”

As the U.S. government increasingly focuses on combating Chinese spies, the threat of Chinese Communist Party espionage seems closer to home than ever. But with the turn of the new year, a new calendar aims to bring awareness of the threat even closer.

And the best part is, it’s free.

The 2023 “Chinese Espionage Wall Calendar” is freely available for download here. Each month’s page features a different person found to have been spying on behalf of the People’s Republic of China.

This month, it’s Kevin Malloy, a former CIA officer now in prison for selling classified information that identified U.S. intelligence sources to the Chinese. 

In February, the featured spy will be Fang Fang, a Chinese national who infiltrated several political teams, including the campaign for Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell. more

Israel Sending Spy Cows in Palestine

The official daily news publication of the Palestinian Authority, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida claims that a Palestinian villager came upon Israeli cattle and made up a story about how Israel has been covertly teaching the cattle to spy on Palestinians.

According to Palestinian villager Rushd Morrar, who spoke to the daily, “These are hired and trained cattle. They hang a medallion with an eavesdropping and recording device, occasionally with cameras, on the neck of each cow to keep an eye on every little thing that happens in Khirbet Yanun.

Additionally, he allegedly asserted that “the settlers release herds of wild boars” to obliterate all Palestinian crops. more

Former U.S. Analyst Convicted of Spying for Cuba Released From Prison

Ana Montes, a former U.S. defense intelligence analyst who was convicted of spying for Cuba, has been released from federal prison in Fort Worth, Texas.

Montes, 65, was released on Friday after serving a majority of her 25-year sentence, according to a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, adding that her early release was based on good behavior.

Montes was an analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency for 16 years, starting in 1985. During her career, she was highly regarded for her expertise about Cuba. But under the radar, Montes used coded messages and water-soluble paper to disclose classified information. Among the secrets she gave to the Cuban government were the identities of four U.S. spies in Cuba. more

When Wiretaps Work - The Tate Brag Tapes

Controversial internet personality Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have reportedly been caught up in a wire-tapping scandal that appears to show the pair admitting to alleged money laundering and other crimes.

The former kickboxer has risen to prominence over the last year due to his outlandish takes about men living in a modern society. The 36-year-old has often gone viral for his comments, which have been labeled as misogynistic and led to a mass-ban of his social media accounts last year.

Towards the end of last year, Romanian police arrested Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan on a number of charges, including sex trafficking, rape and conspiracy to form a criminal group.

According to Digi24, the Romanian police successfully wiretapped the brothers, during which they admitted to a number of crimes. more

"Well, shut my mouth!"

In the name of protecting your conversations...

Shiftall's Mutalk believes it can help.

The device looks like an eerie tech version of a mouth gag, but it's actually meant to help you talk more easily in the virtual and work worlds you may be interacting with. It calls itself a "soundproof Bluetooth microphone that makes it difficult for others to hear your voice and at the same time, makes it difficult for ambient noise to enter the microphone."

French startup Skyted created a similarly sound-absorbing mask to ensure privacy on calls while in crowded and noisy places. It looks more like a bulky version of the reusable masks we've all grown accustomed to during the pandemic, but Skyted says it absorbs 80% of voice vibration and directs it instead through a wireless Bluetooth connection to our phones or computers.

"My original concept was from a transportation perspective, as I focused on how we could keep the human voice from traveling to keep calls private, silent and confidential," Skyted CEO Stéphane Hersen said in a statement when announcing his device. more

EXTRA CREDIT

Caught Eavesdropping in California? You'll Need a Mouthpiece

Text is attorney website advertising. Photo from Library of Congress.

California’s state laws make it clear that a citizen’s right to privacy (at least from one another) is highly valued. In fact, it is a crime to use electronic devices to monitor or record another person’s private communication.

If you have been arrested for eavesdropping in San Diego it is important to get the help of a criminal defense attorney immediately. Your future is at stake, and an attorney can help to minimize the consequences of your alleged behavior. Call the ... best eavesdropping attorney San Diego today to request a free consultation.

California state law prohibits citizens from breaching one another’s privacy by horning in on private conversations. While it is not a crime to simply overhear another conversation with your own two ears, it is a crime to use an electronic device to help you intentionally monitor or record another’s communication.

California Penal Code 632 PC states that it is illegal to: 

• Intentionally
• Without consent of all parties
• Use an electronic amplifying or recording device
• To eavesdrop or record
• A confidential communication. more

The 2.4 GHz Bug: $10

Another Good Reason to Schedule TSCM Corporate Security Inspections

This 2.4 GHz bug is just one of many eavesdropping devices, GPS trackers and spy cameras flooding the market these days. Corporations valuing information security and privacy need to be especially alert.

Many of these surveillance devices are not sophisticated, but they are very effective. 

Worse, they are readily available to anyone with a credit card and internet access. Most are so inexpensive they are considered “toss-away” — use once, don’t retrieve — perfect for short-term, low-risk use. Let’s examine… more

Spy Quote of the Week

"Peacetime espionage is best defined as not particularly illegal, and the lack of global governance is likely an intentional choice." ~Danielle Han, from the article: Aspymmetrical Powers: Economic and Cyber Espionage

Georgia Coaches Laugh Off Unfounded ‘Spy Camera’ Accusations

Georgia coaches laughed off Thursday’s hot rumor at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. There was a loose accusation from an Ohio State sportswriter that the Bulldogs used a hidden camera to spy on the Buckeyes’ practices at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“I hope that’s true,” UGA offensive coordinator Todd Monken said, laughing aloud when asked about it during Media Day on Thursday. “I hope we’ve been in their hotel. I hope we’ve been in their practices. I hope we’re logged into their computers.”

Monken quickly added – “That’s a joke.” ...

The truth is, there was a camera found in the stadium before the Buckeyes’ first practice at Mercedes-Benz Stadium this week during a routine security sweep, according to people familiar with the situation. The camera belonged to the stadium as a permanent fixture and was not being operated at the time. Ohio State was informed about it, the camera promptly was removed and everybody moved on. more

Time to read:
Spies on the Sidelines: The High-Stakes World of NFL Espionage

EarSpy Attack Can Use Motion Sensors Data to Pry on Android Devices

As smartphone manufacturers are improving the ear speakers in their devices, it can become easier for malicious actors to leverage a particular side-channel for eavesdropping on a targeted user’s conversations, according to a team of researchers from several universities in the United States.

The attack method, named EarSpy, is described in a paper published just before Christmas by researchers from Texas A&M University, Temple University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of Dayton.

EarSpy relies on the phone’s ear speaker — the speaker at the top of the device that is used when the phone is held to the ear — and the device’s built-in accelerometer for capturing the tiny vibrations generated by the speaker. more

Turning Google Smart Speakers into Wiretaps

I (@downrightnifty4874) was recently rewarded a total of $107,500 by Google for responsibly disclosing security issues in the Google Home smart speaker that allowed an attacker within wireless proximity to install a “backdoor” account on the device, enabling them to send commands to it remotely over the Internet, access its microphone feed, and make arbitrary HTTP requests within the victim’s LAN (which could potentially expose the Wi-Fi password or provide the attacker direct access to the victim’s other devices). These issues have since been fixed. more video

The Lasers are Coming - Killer Eyeglasses & Drones

For years, movies have teased us with the possibilities of augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR), from Minority Report to Iron Man. But unlike robotic insects and flying suits, AR and MR smart glasses are much closer to reality for everyday consumers. One of the major barriers has been consumers’ desire for lightweight smart glasses that resemble standard eyeglasses and can be worn all day, every day. Compact, chic designs require projection technology and batteries that are as small and power-efficient as possible, which has been difficult to achieve. The internet hype that AR glasses are just around the corner has given into the reality that there are a number of large problems to solve before mass deployment in the consumer space can begin. more

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Aerial drones are essentially the new improvised explosive devices (IEDs)—they’re relatively cheap and easily weaponized. Weaponized swarms of drones working together on a mission are an asymmetric threat that can quickly turn into an ugly situation. In the future, drones are expected to become faster, more autonomous, more difficult to detect or jam, and deadlier, with more sophisticated swarm attacks.

An arms race of sorts is quietly underway to be able to counter any countermeasures against drones. So the U.S. military is adopting a multilayered counter-drone approach to deal primarily with small drones (classified as Groups 1 and 2)—including commercial ones you can easily buy online and ones with fixed wings that look like tiny airplanes. Pinpoint accuracy at the speed of light makes high-energy lasers, a form of directed energy, one of the most promising options. more

FutureWatch: More Progress on the Electronic Dog Nose - TSCM Potential

Recap #1: Device can detect distress signals from plants that are harmed, under attack It turns out the best way to hear a plant scream is to smell it. (10/17/2008) more

Recap #2: Specially trained dogs have been used to sniff out covert electronic items, like cell phones in prisons, for quite a while now. The secret to detection is the device's electronic circuit boards. They contain these compounds: triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO) and hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone (HPK). This second compound is also found on CDs, DVDs, Blu-Rays, the old tech floppy disks. (5/18/2021) more

The latest development:
Researchers use biomimicry to enhance particle detection 16-fold by sniffing like dogs. more

FutureWatch: Technical Surveillance Countermeasures (TSCM) professionals have many types of technologies at their disposal for detecting illegal electronic surveillance devices. To name a few... Non-Linear Junction Detection, Infrared Thermography, and Radio-frequency Spectrum Analysis. We are now well on our way to adding EDN to our kit.

Eavesdropping & Anti-Eavesdropping Apps

Two new apps to be aware of…

The iEavesdrop app redirects internal microphone, external wired microphone or line input input audio to any Bluetooth audio device such as AirPods so that you can use your phone as a stealth listening device.

Using the correct line input cables, audio from any device such as an external microphone, in-flight entertainment or portable gaming device can be routed to your AirPods or other Bluetooth device. iEavesdrop will work with all iOS devices.

THIS APP CAN ALSO BE USED FOR MANY OTHER PURPOSES SUCH AS A BABY MONITOR, HEARING AID OR ANY OTHER APPLICATION THAT REQUIRES YOU TO LISTEN IN OR ROUTE MICROPHONE AUDIO TO A BLUETOOTH DEVICE.
(iOS)

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(ANDROID)

About this app...
Ever thought someone might eavesdrop through your smart phone? Skewy is a privacy protection method, which is more than just a software setting. With Skewy you can mask your conversation with a simple – yet effective method. Simply making the audio data picked up by your phone unusable. Additionally, Skewy can detect ultrasonic signals to indicate the presence of device tracking technologies.

Last Minute Xmas Gift for Your TSCM Nerd

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