Privacy advocates say the measure will lead to widespread use of drones for electronic surveillance by police agencies across the country and eventually by private companies as well. (more)
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
P.D. Drone Home
FutureWatch
Look! Up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? It’s … a drone, and it’s watching you. That’s what privacy advocates fear from a bill Congress passed this week to make it easier for the government to fly unmanned spy planes in U.S. airspace.
The FAA Reauthorization Act, which President Obama is expected to sign, also orders the Federal Aviation Administration to develop regulations for the testing and licensing of commercial drones by 2015.
Privacy advocates say the measure will lead to widespread use of drones for electronic surveillance by police agencies across the country and eventually by private companies as well. (more)
Privacy advocates say the measure will lead to widespread use of drones for electronic surveillance by police agencies across the country and eventually by private companies as well. (more)
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Today in Eavesdropping News
PA - Three members of one family have pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the concealing of a digital recorder inside the home of another relative because they did not believe his alibi for the night a Buffalo Township woman was murdered.
Douglas Edward Louk, 43, and his wife, Kristen Louk, 29, both of 1149 Robinson Highway, Robinson Township, and Loretta Holland, 45, and Robert E. Boyd, 39, both of 2995 Taft St., North Franklin Township, were charged by state police with wiretapping and criminal conspiracy. (more)
Philippines - Controversial Personality’s problems never end. After a series of unfortunate events, CP is in trouble again. According to online buzz, bosses are investigating employees’ complaints against CP. Coworkers suspect CP of bugging their cell phones using a certain computer software. Should Former Lover change phones and passwords now? CP, who’s been rebuffed by the public for such shenanigans, just never learns. (more)
Douglas Edward Louk, 43, and his wife, Kristen Louk, 29, both of 1149 Robinson Highway, Robinson Township, and Loretta Holland, 45, and Robert E. Boyd, 39, both of 2995 Taft St., North Franklin Township, were charged by state police with wiretapping and criminal conspiracy. (more)
Philippines - Controversial Personality’s problems never end. After a series of unfortunate events, CP is in trouble again. According to online buzz, bosses are investigating employees’ complaints against CP. Coworkers suspect CP of bugging their cell phones using a certain computer software. Should Former Lover change phones and passwords now? CP, who’s been rebuffed by the public for such shenanigans, just never learns. (more)
SpyCam Story #648 - Today in Video Voyeurism
MA - A 24-year-old Somerville man has been indicted on charges alleging that he took video of women inside a YMCA locker room without their knowledge, according to Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone. (more)
WA - King County prosecutors charged a 48-year-old Renton man Feb. 2 with voyeurism after he allegedly took photographs inside of the women's locker room at the Tukwila LA Fitness, 350 Baker Blvd. (more)
UK - At Carlisle Crown Court, Gary Flanagan, 26, admitted a single allegation of voyeurism – by using his mobile phone to take an indecent photograph in a toilet and 23 child pornography offences. (more)
Illinois Tries to Untangle Their Wiretap Law
IL - "We specifically applaud state Rep. Elaine Nekritz, D-Des Plaines, for proposing legislation that would remove from the eavesdropping law instances in which the recording of an individual without their knowledge or consent is a felony.
Specifically, House Bill 3944 would exempt from an eavesdropping violation the recording of a peace officer who is performing a public duty in a public place and speaking at a volume audible to the unassisted human ear.
The legislation also would permit a nonemployee to record a conversation if a corporation or other business entity announces it may record or listen to a telephone conversation with a nonemployee. Both are situations that members of the general public encounter every day." (more)
Specifically, House Bill 3944 would exempt from an eavesdropping violation the recording of a peace officer who is performing a public duty in a public place and speaking at a volume audible to the unassisted human ear.
The legislation also would permit a nonemployee to record a conversation if a corporation or other business entity announces it may record or listen to a telephone conversation with a nonemployee. Both are situations that members of the general public encounter every day." (more)
Silvio Berlusconi Wrapped up in Wiretaps Again
Italy - Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi is facing a fresh trial on charges of revealing a secret wiretap in 2005. This will bring to four the number of current trials in which Mr Berlusconi is the main defendant. (more)
SpyCam Story #647 - Unintended Exhibitionists
Feeds from thousands of Trendnet home security cameras have been breached, allowing any web user to access live footage without needing a password.
Internet addresses which link to the video streams have been posted to a variety of popular messageboard sites. Users have expressed concern after finding they could view children's bedrooms among other locations.
Oops...
US-based Trendnet says it is in the process of releasing updates to correct a coding error introduced in 2010...
"We first became aware of this on 12 January," said Zak Wood, Trendnet's director of global marketing.
"As of this week we have identified 26 [vulnerable] models. Seven of the models - the firmware has been tested and released. We anticipate to have all of the revised firmware available this week. We are scrambling to discover how the code was introduced and at this point it seems like a coding oversight." (more) (example)
Spybusters Security Alert: Check to see if you are operating any cameras made by Trendnet. If so, contact Trendnet for a firmware update. Then, change your password.
Internet addresses which link to the video streams have been posted to a variety of popular messageboard sites. Users have expressed concern after finding they could view children's bedrooms among other locations.
Oops...
 |
| Click to enlarge. |
"We first became aware of this on 12 January," said Zak Wood, Trendnet's director of global marketing.
"As of this week we have identified 26 [vulnerable] models. Seven of the models - the firmware has been tested and released. We anticipate to have all of the revised firmware available this week. We are scrambling to discover how the code was introduced and at this point it seems like a coding oversight." (more) (example)
Spybusters Security Alert: Check to see if you are operating any cameras made by Trendnet. If so, contact Trendnet for a firmware update. Then, change your password.
Monday, February 6, 2012
SpyCam Story #646 - Today in Video Voyeurism
VT - A Bellows Falls man is facing up to 15 years in prison for allegedly taking sexually explicit photographs and video footage of a woman and uploading them onto a pornographic website.
John G. Lawlor, 38, pleaded not guilty last week to one felony and five misdemeanor counts of voyeurism. If convicted, he could also face up to a $10,000 fine.
Lawlor’s computer and a video camera were taken as evidence and contained seven digital videos, five of which had been previously deleted but were recovered using file recovery software... in at least four of the videos Lawlor’s face can be clearly seen hiding the video camera in a floor grate. (more)
WA - The trial of a former Washington state hatchery manager charged with a single count of voyeurism has been pushed back two months.
Edwin Carl Jouper of Shelton had been scheduled to appear in court yesterday, Jan. 31, but according to Mason County Superior Court, he waived his right to a speedy trial. It's now scheduled for April 3.
Jouper, then 57, was arrested at the Department of Fish & Wildlife's George Adams Hatchery outside Shelton on Nov. 10 following an investigation into a camera discovered in the women's bathroom there. (more)
 |
| DOH! |
Lawlor’s computer and a video camera were taken as evidence and contained seven digital videos, five of which had been previously deleted but were recovered using file recovery software... in at least four of the videos Lawlor’s face can be clearly seen hiding the video camera in a floor grate. (more)
WA - The trial of a former Washington state hatchery manager charged with a single count of voyeurism has been pushed back two months.
Edwin Carl Jouper of Shelton had been scheduled to appear in court yesterday, Jan. 31, but according to Mason County Superior Court, he waived his right to a speedy trial. It's now scheduled for April 3.
Jouper, then 57, was arrested at the Department of Fish & Wildlife's George Adams Hatchery outside Shelton on Nov. 10 following an investigation into a camera discovered in the women's bathroom there. (more)
Satellite Phone Encryption Cracked
Security researchers have warned that the satellite phones relied on by businesses, charities and government agencies in trouble spots and emergencies worldwide can be easily intercepted and deciphered.
German academics said they had cracked two encryption systems used to protect satellite phone signals and that anyone with cheap computer equipment and radio could eavesdrop on calls over an entire continent. Hundreds of thousands of satellite phone users are thought to be affected.
“We were able to completely reverse engineer the encryption algorithms employed,” said Benedikt Driessen and Ralf Hund of Ruhr University Bochum as they announced their report, "Don't Trust Satellite Phones". (more)
German academics said they had cracked two encryption systems used to protect satellite phone signals and that anyone with cheap computer equipment and radio could eavesdrop on calls over an entire continent. Hundreds of thousands of satellite phone users are thought to be affected. “We were able to completely reverse engineer the encryption algorithms employed,” said Benedikt Driessen and Ralf Hund of Ruhr University Bochum as they announced their report, "Don't Trust Satellite Phones". (more)
Friday, February 3, 2012
Security Director Alert - Conference Call Eavesdropping
A conference call between Scotland Yard and the FBI has been intercepted and published by a member of the computer hacking group Anonymous.
The hacker apparently managed to access the call after getting into an FBI email which gave details of the call. The email was also posted online. (more)
Murray Associates advice:
Conferencing numbers and passwords are often posted on cubicle walls, sent via email and sometimes written underneath the table-top speakerphones themselves. This is a common, but dangerous, employee habit in many of the companies we visit. Conference call information should be held confidential and distributed on a need-to-know basis. To do otherwise, invites unauthorized call participants.
Teleconferencing Checklist
• Change all current passcodes.
• Tell employees they should not email or post the new passcodes.
• Switch to a conference call system where:
-- each participant is given a unique passcode,
-- the passcode is changed for each new conference call,
-- only the pre-authorized number of callers may be admitted,
-- and a record of all call participants is available to the call leader.
The hacker apparently managed to access the call after getting into an FBI email which gave details of the call. The email was also posted online. (more)
Conferencing numbers and passwords are often posted on cubicle walls, sent via email and sometimes written underneath the table-top speakerphones themselves. This is a common, but dangerous, employee habit in many of the companies we visit. Conference call information should be held confidential and distributed on a need-to-know basis. To do otherwise, invites unauthorized call participants.
Teleconferencing Checklist
• Change all current passcodes.
• Tell employees they should not email or post the new passcodes.
• Switch to a conference call system where:
-- each participant is given a unique passcode,
-- the passcode is changed for each new conference call,
-- only the pre-authorized number of callers may be admitted,
-- and a record of all call participants is available to the call leader.
Think this is a rare problem?
Think again...
More Conference Call Intercepts & Advice
http://spybusters.blogspot.com/2011/06/beef-board-admits-ceo-eavesdropped-on.html
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Kevin's Security Scrapbook Voted Top 10 Investigator Blog!
Congratulations! Your blog has been selected as one of PInow’s Top Investigation Blogs. We reviewed blogs in the investigation industry and selected yours because of the quality posts and the voice of your blog.
We are going to announce your top blogger status to the rest of the investigation profession in an article that will go out to over 6,000 investigators on February 3rd.
"With changing legislation, licensing, laws and crazy stories there's a lot for investigators to keep up with. Many investigators use blogs to share their experiences, provide updates and reviews on products and to discuss experiences with databases. A blog is also a great way to market your business, connect with potential clients and become a leader in your industry. There's a wide array of investigations blogs out there, and since maintaining a blog is no easy feat PInow decided to compile a list of the top investigation blogs.
There was no specific, formulaic ranking used when creating the list, but we did take into account industry relevancy, consistency and recency of posts, variety of content and professionalism. Please keep this in mind if you disagree with the rankings."And, congratulations to all my colleagues who also made the list. Nice to see your hard work is appreciated.
Thanks, PInow.com!
The Apple Bug That Let Us Spy on a Total Stranger’s iPhone
via Gizmodo...
Every single iMessage to and from this man's iPhone—his friends call him Wiz—has been sent to us by accident. We know about his job, sex life, and address. Apple, you might want to fix this. The story is simple... this is like a wiretap we didn't ask for—and Wiz has no idea I'm looped in on the whole thing. He texts throughout the day like usual, oblivious to the snooping. Now we see just how big of a deal this obscure "bug" is: Your entire personal life could be flung open, and you'd never know. Take our word for it—we've gotten to know Wiz pretty well. (more)
P.S. They even figured out that "Wiz" is an Apple employee, and at which store.
SpyCam Story #645 - Today in Video Voyeurism
Scotland - A spy camera has been found hidden in a changing cubicle at a Scots leisure centre. Police are investigating the discovery of the pinhole camera at a sports facility in Fife. The tiny device was spotted by a male gym user getting changed at the Beacon Leisure Centre, Burntisland. The find sparked searches of at least eight other sports facilities in the area.
One worker, who did not wish to be named, said: “I believe this has been happening at other places in Fife as well. “I think the public should know what’s going on. A man found the camera in a cubicle and handed it in. (more)
WA - The Spokane County Sheriff’s office is investigating reports of voyeurism by a security guard at a North Spokane Fred Meyer... A search warrant says “the video is not clear enough to show him holding his phone in his hand at the time of the contact, but preceding footage shows he was using his phone and kept it in his hand.” (more)
WA - A woman called 911 to report a man was inside the women's locker room of LA Fitness in Tukwila taking photographs, according to Sgt. Eric Lund with the Tukwila Police Department. The woman confronted the man and he fled. About an hour later employees of the Fairwood LA Fitness identified the suspect (he was a member who checked in). Tukwila officers and King County deputies arrested the suspect in Fairwood. (more)
FL - A Marion County Sheriff’s Office corrections officer and a health care official employed at the county jail were arrested Wednesday in connection with video voyeurism of young children in a joint investigation involving sheriff’s detectives and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. (more)
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
The French Cuff Connection - For the Well-Dressed Bond
Polished Silver Oval WiFi and 2GB USB Combination Cufflinks.These cufflinks feature 2GB USB storage plus they provide a WiFi hotspot to multiple devices! You can also access media servers from the host computer. Perfect for business meetings, travel and techies everywhere.
WiFi Connection
Simply download the accompanying installation software to an Internet ready host computer, insert the USB hotspot cufflink into that computer’s USB port, and the computer then becomes a high-speed WiFi hotspot. It also enables the computer to wirelessly share media files with electronic devices like tablets and smartphones.
What Connects?
Smartphones, tablets or any other wireless device! (more)
Spybusters Security Tip #721 - Periodically check your computer for items (like these) plugged into the USB ports on the back of your box.
FutureWatch: Mindreading - Advances another step
Opening up the possibility that a sort of mind-reading might one day be possible, scientists say that through a kind of surgical wiretapping they were able to translate brain electrical signals back into single words overheard by patients, and to do it with 89 percent accuracy. “We’re trying to figure out how the brain decodes acoustics into words,” says study senior author Bob Knight of the University of California-Berkeley...
“The real advance is that it shows we are closing in on the code that the brain uses to give meanings to words,” says New York University neuroscientist David Poeppel. (more)
10 Cell Phones Tips - Before Traveling Overseas
We’ve all seen people on TV and movies casually using their cell phones as they travel to various countries around the globe. No big deal right? Not until you get your monthly statement. Post-vacation cell phone bills are the stuff nightmares are made from.
Here is the condensed version of the 10 tips cell phone users need to know before traveling overseas. (Full version here.)
- Plan ahead
- Call your provider
- Check bandwidths
- Get phone unlocked
- GSM phone
- Check plans carefully
- Check data plans
- Don’t switch too early
- International charger adapter
- Change SIM card
Security Director Tip: Prepare here... before it hits the fan.
In any enterprise, stuff happens. When you hear about it, it is probably bad stuff.
Here's a great resource to prevent some of the bad stuff from happening - and to deal effectively with the consequences of the bad stuff that can't be prevented.
Business Survival(tm) is a blog filled with great information and resources for key decision-makers from Rothstein Associates Inc.
It covers:
• Business Continuity,
• Disaster Recovery,
• Enterprise Resilience,
• Crisis Management,
• Crisis Communication,
• Emergency Management,
• Risk Management and
• Root Cause Analysis.
Recent posts include:
Role of Social Media in Crisis Communication
Thousands of Industrial Systems Unwittingly Hooked Up to Internet
Here's a great resource to prevent some of the bad stuff from happening - and to deal effectively with the consequences of the bad stuff that can't be prevented.
Business Survival(tm) is a blog filled with great information and resources for key decision-makers from Rothstein Associates Inc.
It covers: • Business Continuity,
• Disaster Recovery,
• Enterprise Resilience,
• Crisis Management,
• Crisis Communication,
• Emergency Management,
• Risk Management and
• Root Cause Analysis.
Recent posts include:
Role of Social Media in Crisis Communication
Thousands of Industrial Systems Unwittingly Hooked Up to Internet
How to improve your disaster recovery preparedness
Business Survival(tm) has been published (in various formats) since 1997 by Philip Jan Rothstein - FBCI. Bookmark this gem, and check-in frequently, or you can subscribe for free, here.
Business Survival(tm) has been published (in various formats) since 1997 by Philip Jan Rothstein - FBCI. Bookmark this gem, and check-in frequently, or you can subscribe for free, here.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
1960's - 1980's Spy Satellites Now Museum Pieces
The satellites -- Gambit 1 KH-7, Gambit 3 KH-8 and Hexagon KH-9 -- were among the most important U.S. photo reconnaissance systems from the 1960s to the 1980s, according to an Air Force report. They used specially-designed film and cameras to take photos from orbit. (more)
SpyCam Story #644 - The Faculty Restroom Can Cam
AR - A former Lavaca Middle School science teacher received a five-year suspended sentence Wednesday after pleading guilty in Sebastian County Circuit Court to video voyeurism.
Michael Allen Clark, 44, was arrested May 20 after he admitted to an Arkansas State Police investigator that he placed a school-issued video camera in the faculty restroom at the middle school, according to a police report.
The camera was discovered by a custodian in a wicker basket, on a shelf located in front of the toilet in the bathroom. The custodian turned it over to Jerri Schaffer, a math teacher at the middle school. (more)
Michael Allen Clark, 44, was arrested May 20 after he admitted to an Arkansas State Police investigator that he placed a school-issued video camera in the faculty restroom at the middle school, according to a police report.
The camera was discovered by a custodian in a wicker basket, on a shelf located in front of the toilet in the bathroom. The custodian turned it over to Jerri Schaffer, a math teacher at the middle school. (more)
Weekend Project - OTS Some Spy Gear for $50. or less
DARPA-Funded Hacker's Tiny $50 Spy Computer Hides In Offices, Drops From Drones
Security researcher Brendan O’Connor is trying a different approach to spy hardware: building a sensor-equipped surveillance-capable computer that’s so cheap it can be sacrificed after one use, with off-the-shelf parts that anyone can buy and assemble for less than fifty dollars.
...the F-BOMB is designed to be a platform for all sorts of applications on its Linux operating system. Outfit it with temperature or humidity sensors, for instance, and it can be used for meteorological research or other innocent data-collecting. But install some Wifi-cracking software or add a $15 GPS module, and it can snoop on data networks or track a target’s location, O’Connor adds.
One version attaches to the Parrot Drone, an iPhone-controllable quadcopter, sucking power off the drone’s rechargeable battery and allowing the user to hover over a target, land it on a roof, or drop the F-BOMB from a hook attachment on the drone. Another version fits inside a carbon monoxide detector, and can be plugged into a wall socket to hide in plain sight inside a target’s building. (more)
SpyCam Story #643 - The Town Hall Spy
 |
| Shirley Town Hall |
MA - A former Shirley town administrator has pleaded guilty to charges that he videotaped female employees in a town hall restroom, and also secretly wiretapped and spied on other town workers.
Middlesex District Attorney Gerard Leone said Kyle Keady pleaded guilty Friday in superior court in Woburn and was sentenced to three years in prison, followed by seven years' probation. Keady was fired after he was charged in 2010.
He pleaded guilty to charges including video recording a person in a state of nudity, wiretapping and breaking and entering.
 |
| Just coincidence? |
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Spycam Story #642 - The Epidemic Continues
CT - A man from South Windsor accused of secretly taping people getting undressed is due in court Thursday. Police said Paul Zajac, 20, hid cameras in bathrooms and bedrooms at his home and his ex-girlfriend's house. He is being charged with 24 counts of voyeurism. (more)
FL - A 24-year-old man was arrested Monday on suspicion of using his iPhone to take an upskirt video of a woman using a Redbox outside a Walmart in Lake County. Lorenzo Adan Ramirez, a landscaper and father of two from Tavares, was arrested in Mount Dora on charges of video voyeurism. (more)
Canada - A former Merritt radio personality will go to jail for nine months and be forbidden from being around children for five years after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography and voyeurism. Jamie McDerment, a small and slightly built 24-year-old man, was led away in handcuffs by two sheriffs Friday afternoon after being sentenced in provincial court... Police also found covert images he admitted to taking of young boys partially naked in a bathroom at Riverside park in August. (more)
I mention incidents like this to raise public awareness of the increase in optical surveillance, and to encourage new laws to address the situation.
Spycam Story #641 - The Church Sleepover
TX - Charges have been upgraded against the Haughton man arrested Sunday after law-enforcement officers learned he placed video cameras in a bathroom used by teenage girls over the weekend.
Paul E. Holmes, 55, of the 700 block of Opal Circle in Haughton, has now been charged with 16 counts of video voyeurism and four counts of production of child pornography.
Police learned Sunday that Holmes had positioned video cameras in one the bathrooms of his house that was used by teenage girls during a sleepover as part of a local church youth activity.
When one of the girls was in the bathroom, she noticed a camera, told her parents, who then provided the information to the Haughton Police Department. When questioned by police, Holmes admitted that he owned the video cameras that were placed in the bathroom that the girls were using. (more)
Paul E. Holmes, 55, of the 700 block of Opal Circle in Haughton, has now been charged with 16 counts of video voyeurism and four counts of production of child pornography. Police learned Sunday that Holmes had positioned video cameras in one the bathrooms of his house that was used by teenage girls during a sleepover as part of a local church youth activity.
When one of the girls was in the bathroom, she noticed a camera, told her parents, who then provided the information to the Haughton Police Department. When questioned by police, Holmes admitted that he owned the video cameras that were placed in the bathroom that the girls were using. (more)
Spycam Story #640 - Epiphany Party at My Place!
Sault Ste. Marie, MI - Investigation Services officers arrested 48 year-old Emmanuel De Melo of 7 Elmwood Avenue on the 24th of January at 11:10 am at the police station and charged him with one count of voyeurism. It is alleged that between the 1st to the 12th of January 2012, the accused used video cameras to record a number of persons that used his bathroom area while they were at gatherings at his residence.
The victims were unaware that the recordings were occurring. (more)
Quik! Hide the Bloodhound
Switzerland - Lawyers for anti-globalization activists at ATTAC went head-to-head with Nestlé lawyers for a second day in the civil spying trial in Lausanne. Nestlé admits it hired a Securitas agent to spy on activists at ATTAC.The company says it is a symbol of globalization that is vulnerable to attacks and the victim of an “ideological war.” Nestlé attorneys argue that it was within its rights to know what was happening in activist circles...
Both sides now await a judgment. (more)
Chucky is Back... and He Owns Your Cell Phone!
 |
| Minh Uong/The New York Times |
And while Mr. Bokath’s job is to expose security flaws in wireless devices, he said it was “trivial” to hack into a cellphone. Indeed, the instructions on how to do it are available online (the link most certainly will not be provided here). “It’s actually quite frightening,” said Mr. Bokath. “Most people have no idea how vulnerable they are when they use their cellphones.” (more)
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Kessler Investigates Cell Phone Spy Apps
In order to test how dangerous your smartphone has become with a simple installation of readily available software from the Internet, Kessler International’s staff purchased a variety of smart phones and installed a variety of popular cell phone spy apps to discover what dangers the software posed and if traces of the apps could be detected by mobile forensic engineers to reveal their existence.
Kessler’s experts tested the products of the major smartphone spyware software providers on BlackBerry, iPhone and a variety of the Android devices. The team of forensic experts then reverse engineered the installation of the software to see how covert the app would be. In every case Kessler found telltale traces of the spyware in every product tested.
Michael G. Kessler, President & CEO of Kessler International stated, “Despite the best efforts of the developers to make their spyware as furtive as possible, my team determined that in every case not one spy app tested could make itself completely invisible. That gives the victims of spyware an important edge in proving their suspicions that their privacy has been invaded.” (more)
Wiretapping Uncovered In The Mexican Congress
Mexican lawmakers said they would formally complain to the attorney general's office Tuesday after finding hidden microphones believed to have been used to spy on the lower house of Congress.
The listening devices were found "in quite a lot of offices, listening to and checking the activities of lawmakers," said Armando Rios Piter, president of the house's political coordination committee, on Televisa channel.
It was unclear who was responsible but lawmakers would release further information when possible, a statement from the lower chamber said. (more)
The listening devices were found "in quite a lot of offices, listening to and checking the activities of lawmakers," said Armando Rios Piter, president of the house's political coordination committee, on Televisa channel.
It was unclear who was responsible but lawmakers would release further information when possible, a statement from the lower chamber said. (more)
Google Oggle is in your Face-book
This could mean, for instance, that when users search via Google, the company will use their activities on sister sites like Gmail and YouTube to influence those users' search results. Google has not done that before.
Google's move -- which was disclosed in a privacy policy that will take effect on March 1 -- is a sign of the fierce competition between Google and Facebook over personal data. Facebook has amassed an unprecedented amount of data about the lives of its more than 800 million members -- information that is coveted by advertisers. (more)
Monday, January 23, 2012
Supreme Court Rules Trackers Require Warrant
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that police must get a search warrant before using GPS technology to track criminal suspects. Associate Justice Antonin Scalia said that the government's installation of a GPS device, and its use to monitor the vehicle's movements, constitutes a search, meaning that a warrant is required.
"By attaching the device to the Jeep" that Jones was using, "officers encroached on a protected area," Scalia wrote.
All nine justices agreed that the placement of the GPS on the Jeep violated the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable search and seizure. (more)
On-line Spies - Affordable, and easy to find.
One such site, hiretohack.net (ignore log-in), advertises online services including being able to "crack" passwords for major email services in less than 48 hours. It says it charges a minimum of $150, depending on the email provider, the password's complexity and the urgency of the job. The site describes itself as a group of technology students based in Europe, U.S. and Asia.
Mischel Kwon, who runs a security-consulting firm and is the former director of the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, a government organization known as US-CERT, says the hacker-for-hire industry is well established. Some are one- or two-person outfits, but there are also larger "organized crime" groups," she said. She and other specialists note that it is also easy to find tools online that assist in hacking into someone's email. (more)
Security Director Alert: Eavesdropping via Video Teleconferencing
Covertly eavesdropping on boardroom chit chat using the teleconferencing system is not new. We've been demonstrating (and correcting) this problem for our clients for years. The vulnerability, however, has finally received some publicity.
Result: Expect more attempts to access video teleconferencing systems.
Recommendations: Turn off the autoanswer feature on your teleconferencing system. Make sure your system is behind a firewall.
FREE offer: The full Murray Associates Video Teleconferencing Security Checklist is available to corporate security directors (only) at no charge. Contact me here, and get our Off-Site Meeting Checklist, too!.
via The New York Times...
One afternoon this month, a hacker took a tour of a dozen conference rooms around the globe via equipment that most every company has in those rooms; videoconferencing equipment...the hacker was HD Moore, a chief security officer at Rapid7, a Boston based company that looks for security holes in computer systems...Mr. Moore has found it easy to get into several top venture capital and law firms, pharmaceutical and oil companies and courtrooms across the country...
“These are literally some of the world’s most important boardrooms — this is where their most critical meetings take place — and there could be silent attendees in all of them.”
New systems are outfitted with a feature that automatically accepts inbound calls so users do not have to press an “accept” button every time someone dials into their videoconference. The effect is that anyone can dial in and look around a room, and the only sign of their presence is a tiny light on a console unit, or the silent swing of a video camera.
Two months ago, Mr. Moore wrote a computer program that scanned the Internet for videoconference systems that were outside the firewall and configured to automatically answer calls. In less than two hours, he had scanned 3 percent of the Internet.
In that sliver, he discovered 5,000 wide-open conference rooms at law firms, pharmaceutical companies, oil refineries, universities and medical centers. He stumbled into a lawyer-inmate meeting room at a prison, an operating room at a university medical center, and a venture capital pitch meeting where a company’s financials were being projected on a screen.
Among the vendors that popped up in Mr. Moore’s scan were Polycom, Cisco, LifeSize, Sony and others. Of those, Polycom — which leads the videoconferencing market in units sold — was the only manufacturer that ships its equipment — from its low-end ViewStation models to its high-end HDX products — with the auto-answer feature enabled by default. (more)
Friday, January 20, 2012
More NOTW Phone Hacking News
According to a report Friday in the British newspaper The Telegraph, a News Corp. division in the UK faces an investigation by the FBI into whether the now-defunct Murdoch tabloid News of the World hacked into a phone on U.S. soil. (more)
Personal Security: How To Avoid Being A Victim, Anywhere, Any time.
via Peter Shankman - NYC street kid, with cred. (abridged version)
• Don’t develop a pattern of behavior.
• Know your surroundings
• DO NOT IGNORE YOUR GUT. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t.
• Have your keys in your hands
• Wherever you are, have a small powerful flashlight.
• Instead of yelling “HELP” when something goes wrong, yell “FIRE!”
• Have a buddy system
• Know the people in your neighborhood.
• Don’t look like a Victim. Walk down a street with your head up and looking around.
• Don’t stare (it can be taken as a challenge) but don’t be afraid to look at people.
• Don’t be clueless
Read the whole article here.
Really, read it. Pass it on.
• Don’t develop a pattern of behavior. • Know your surroundings
• DO NOT IGNORE YOUR GUT. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t.
• Have your keys in your hands
• Wherever you are, have a small powerful flashlight.
• Instead of yelling “HELP” when something goes wrong, yell “FIRE!”
• Have a buddy system
• Know the people in your neighborhood.
• Don’t look like a Victim. Walk down a street with your head up and looking around.
• Don’t stare (it can be taken as a challenge) but don’t be afraid to look at people.
• Don’t be clueless
Read the whole article here.
Really, read it. Pass it on.
How to Bug a Germ
The world's smallest ear doesn't belong to any animal. Instead, it's a tiny piece of gold suspended in a laser beam. It can hear sounds a million times fainter than any human ear can, making it a powerful acoustic microscope.
The nano-ear is the work of Jochen Friedmann and Andrey Lutich of Munich's Ludwig-Maximilians University. The setup is a progression from the 1986 development of so-called "optical tweezers", which use laser beams to trap microscopic particles inside the most powerful part of the electric field. This effectively suspends the particle so that it no longer moves on its own - the only way it can move if something nearby disturbs it...
The nano-ear is the work of Jochen Friedmann and Andrey Lutich of Munich's Ludwig-Maximilians University. The setup is a progression from the 1986 development of so-called "optical tweezers", which use laser beams to trap microscopic particles inside the most powerful part of the electric field. This effectively suspends the particle so that it no longer moves on its own - the only way it can move if something nearby disturbs it...
FutureWatch: The nano-ear would be hugely useful in bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms, as being able to "hear" the sounds they make could provide vital new data on what distinguishes different strains. (more)
Illegal Eavesdropping Costs NOTW 1 Million...
...and that doesn't include the lawyers fees, and the lost revenue from having to shut down the paper.
UK - Rupert Murdoch's media empire has agreed to pay large payouts to 37 phone-hacking victims, including British actor Jude Law, football player Ashley Cole and former deputy prime minister John Prescott.
The High Court in London heard details of new settlements totaling about $1 million for illegal eavesdropping by Murdoch-owned tabloids on celebrities' phone conversations...
The High Court in London heard details of new settlements totaling about $1 million for illegal eavesdropping by Murdoch-owned tabloids on celebrities' phone conversations...
Law said he launched his case to find out the truth about the intrusion into his private life between 2003 and 2006. He said he changed his phones and had his house checked for bugs, but that the information continued to appear in the press. (more)
SpyCam Story #639 - The House Guest
CT - A Manchester man was charged Wednesday with 24 counts of voyeuristic recording of another person. Police said Paul Zajac, 20, of Union Street, was charged after a forensic examination of his computer turned up 24 images of people using a bathroom or changing in a bedroom in a home in South Windsor where he used to live. (more)
SpyCam Story #638 - The Hole in the Wall Gang
WA - A 33-year-old Renton man is accused of attempting to spy on his estranged wife by drilling a hole in her bedroom wall and inserting a tiny camera to record what was going on inside, according to King County prosecutors.
Michael James Halvorson, who was originally arrested Dec. 28 for violating a protection order, was charged earlier this month with residential burglary domestic violence, according to court records.
Halvorson and his wife of nine years separated in the spring and are in the middle of a divorce, according to charging papers. But they shared a duplex — he lived in one unit with his father, and she lived on the other side... A wall separated Halvorson's bedroom from his wife's...
Michael James Halvorson, who was originally arrested Dec. 28 for violating a protection order, was charged earlier this month with residential burglary domestic violence, according to court records.
Halvorson and his wife of nine years separated in the spring and are in the middle of a divorce, according to charging papers. But they shared a duplex — he lived in one unit with his father, and she lived on the other side... A wall separated Halvorson's bedroom from his wife's...
...at 4 a.m., his wife was "woken up again by the sound of something drilling through her bedroom wall"...a "snakelike camera" equipped with a flashlight came through the wall, extending about 6 inches into the room... officers later found a home-inspection camera with a flashlight in Halvorson's bedroom, but were unable to locate Halvorson... Crumbled drywall was found on both sides of the hole, papers say. (more)
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Security Director Tip: Kill Crime Around Your Executives' Homes
Better than 10 Bobbies blowing their whistles.
Turn their neighborhoods into networks of awareness.
A company called Village Defense provides neighborhoods with a real-time communication system that connects your executives with their neighbors. Here's how it works when you are part of the Village Defense group...
"With one phone call, you have the ability to notify all your neighbors when a crime or suspicious activity is in progress, through a text message, home phone call, and cell phone call. Now, everyone knows exactly what's going on and what to look out for. Transition from living in isolation to connectivity by bringing your neighborhood into the 21st century."
Does it work?
"Sims Estates, a once-struggling neighborhood in northwest Atlanta, has experienced a 73% reduction of crime due to the Village Defense real-time crime alert system." (more)
"Sims Estates, a once-struggling neighborhood in northwest Atlanta, has experienced a 73% reduction of crime due to the Village Defense real-time crime alert system." (more)
FutureWatch - Watch for this concept to spread from crime alerts, to alerts of all kinds (lost pets, door-to-door salespersons alerts, neighbor needs help, road conditions, for sale items, etc.). This would be an especially valuable service if local government joined in (recycle pick-up reminders, police news, posting town events, etc.). Think of it as a micro-Internet.
007 Rocks!
UK - In a television program aired on Russian state television in 2006, Russia's FSB security service accused Britain of using the gadget for top secret communications in Moscow, but London did not admit to the charge at the time. Now Jonathan Powell, who was chief of staff to then Prime Minister Tony Blair, has confirmed the Russians were correct.
"They had us bang to rights," Powell says in a BBC documentary to be aired on Thursday...
A combination of video grabs from footage broadcast by Russian state-run television in 2006 allegedly shows a man, said to be a British spy, in a park outside Moscow collecting a fake rock being used as a high-tech version of the spy's traditional letter-box or dead drop in which agents can anonymously deliver or retrieve information. (more)
Russian television claimed there was proof British spies used electronic equipment hidden inside a fake rock to exchange information between agents and embassy staff.
An agent would pass by and download data from his portable computer, while a diplomat would later collect it in a similar way. Four Britons involved in the spy ring have been identified by the Federal Security Service.
Christopher Pierce, the diplomat who was said to have installed the secret link, was also responsible for financing Russian non-governmental organizations with British grants, and so was one of the other alleged spies, Mark Doe...
Britain expressed “concern and surprise” over the allegations at the time. The “spy rock scandal” was taken with skepticism by many people, including Russians. They said it was either a scam or simply blown out of proportion in what was described as a Kremlin assault on NGOs. (more)
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Security Director Tips: Tell Employees about these Safety Apps
via Techlicious...
If you’re concerned that someone you care about could be in danger, or if you worry about safety yourself, here are a handful of apps that can help...
bSafe
This free app lets users select personal Guardians, the people who will be notified when help is needed. All users’ guardians are alerted with an emergency SOS message that includes the sender’s location, while a direct call is placed to one specified contact.
StreetSafe
Unlike other safety apps that alert friends or family who may not be able to help in the event of an emergency, this iPhone app features a silent alarm that, when triggered, dispatches emergency help to your exact location. If you are feeling uneasy and want someone to stay on the phone with you until you arrive safely at your destination, you can also activate StreetSafe’s Walk With Me feature, which connects you with a trained Safety Advisor
MyForce
Before using this one you need to complete an online profile that includes your photo and any medical issues you may have. Then when MyForce receives an alert from you, it dispatches the nearest emergency responders and transmits to them your profile information. MyForce also records audio coming from your phone and reports any updates or movement to the authorities.
SecuraFone
This free iPhone and Android app provides free GPS tracking and monitoring that can be helpful when dealing with children, aging parents or employees. Once the app is downloaded to a phone, the SecuraFone account creator can log in to locate any phone registered to the account. (more)
This free app lets users select personal Guardians, the people who will be notified when help is needed. All users’ guardians are alerted with an emergency SOS message that includes the sender’s location, while a direct call is placed to one specified contact.
StreetSafe
Unlike other safety apps that alert friends or family who may not be able to help in the event of an emergency, this iPhone app features a silent alarm that, when triggered, dispatches emergency help to your exact location. If you are feeling uneasy and want someone to stay on the phone with you until you arrive safely at your destination, you can also activate StreetSafe’s Walk With Me feature, which connects you with a trained Safety Advisor
MyForce
Before using this one you need to complete an online profile that includes your photo and any medical issues you may have. Then when MyForce receives an alert from you, it dispatches the nearest emergency responders and transmits to them your profile information. MyForce also records audio coming from your phone and reports any updates or movement to the authorities.
SecuraFone
This free iPhone and Android app provides free GPS tracking and monitoring that can be helpful when dealing with children, aging parents or employees. Once the app is downloaded to a phone, the SecuraFone account creator can log in to locate any phone registered to the account. (more)
And, of course, one featured here recently, Help!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
SpyCam Story #637 - Games at the Party Store
A female employee made a complaint to Swansea Police. She reported to Det. Marc Haslam that every time she and other female employees went to the restroom, Silva would go to his office and shut the door. The employee then noticed the bathroom view on Silva’s computer monitor in his office and notified police.
Police seized a covert camera in the bathroom during the search along with a VCR and monitor from Silva’s office. (more)
SpyCam Story #636 - "Just puttin' out personnel fires, Chief."
OH - The second in command in the fire department has been placed on administrative leave following accusations that he spied on the department through webcams...
...the investigation began after complaints ''that fire department personnel believed their personal activities and conversations while working at the department were being subject to video and / or audio surveillance.''
Firefighters told the chief and trustees that they believed that cameras on fire department computers were configured to remotely video and or audio record departmental personnel without their knowledge. (more)
...the investigation began after complaints ''that fire department personnel believed their personal activities and conversations while working at the department were being subject to video and / or audio surveillance.''
Firefighters told the chief and trustees that they believed that cameras on fire department computers were configured to remotely video and or audio record departmental personnel without their knowledge. (more)
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