UK - Concerns have been raised about the security of British secrets after a top political aide lost his BlackBerry device to a suspected Chinese spy, sources say.
The Sunday Times newspaper says one of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's most senior aides was the victim of a "honeytrap" scheme in which the man was lured to a hotel room by a woman he met in a disco in Shanghai, China, only to find the next morning that his BlackBerry device had been stolen. (more)
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
7 Mediterranean Islands of Carefree Wiretapping
Malta - Although the new telephone and Internet eavesdropping system commissioned by the Malta Communications Authority on behalf of the Malta Security Service began operating in October 2006, it has been up and running in the absence of a set of technical obligations that undertakings related to the system need to adhere to. The lack of technical obligations, a situation that had persisted for at least close to a year and a half, leaves a concerning void in the regulation and operation of the State’s practice of tapping the Maltese public’s phone calls and monitoring their Internet communications. (more)
Money Card Bugs
A UK crime survey shows credit and debit card fraud has reached a record high of £535 million...new trend was the use of bugging devices which are fitted near shop tills to record the information stored on the magnetic microchip. (more)
Kids Science Camp - Learning to Become a Detective
WA - A group of 75-kids, from kindergarten to fifth grade...learned how to become a detective. They built a spy kit, including a homemade listening device.
"It was pretty fun. We made spy ears, pens. We made everything a detective has and stuff," said Brian McMurray, camper. (more)
Note to Washington State University - Tri-Cities teachers... (oopsie)
It is illegal for private detectives, teachers and students to possess electronic eavesdropping devices. Besides, this is not what most detectives do, and parentsmay should object on moral grounds. The rest of the curriculum looks very worthwhile, however. No wonder all the classes are sold out!
"It was pretty fun. We made spy ears, pens. We made everything a detective has and stuff," said Brian McMurray, camper. (more)
Note to Washington State University - Tri-Cities teachers... (oopsie)
It is illegal for private detectives, teachers and students to possess electronic eavesdropping devices. Besides, this is not what most detectives do, and parents
Sunday, July 20, 2008
"Bad artists copy. Good artists steal." ~ P.P.
Brazil - Police have arrested a suspect in the heist of two Pablo Picasso prints from a museum in Sao Paulo and recovered one of the works, police and a museum official said Saturday.Inspector Cesar Carlos Dias said information obtained through wiretaps of gang members involved in unrelated robberies led police to Ueslei Barros, the suspect in the July robbery. (more)
Want your own Picasso?
Make it yourself.
Click here.
"How Can I Stop My Ex From Bugging My Phone & PC?"
My ex is a Private Investigator, and I believe he is bugging my phone–and possibly my PC. What can I do to stop this and/or prosecute? I have Vonage and my phone goes through a cable connection, as does my pc.
Thank you,
Patricia
(answers)
Thank you,
Patricia
(answers)
Quote of the Week
"No matter which side of the wiretapping issue you stand on it is clear that the only way to conquer terrorism is to address the hopelessness and hatred at the root of it."From a statement is issued by Remo, Inc.,
Remo D. Belli, CEO and Founder (more)
"And now for something completely different..."
UK - More than 100 USB memory sticks, some containing secret information, have been lost or stolen from the Ministry of Defence since 2004, it has emerged.
The department also admitted that more than 650 laptops had been stolen over the past four years - nearly double the figure previously claimed.
The Mod said it has no idea on when, where and how the memory sticks were lost.
The official total is now 658 laptops stolen, with another 89 lost. Just 32 have been recovered. (more)
Solution 1
Solution 2
The department also admitted that more than 650 laptops had been stolen over the past four years - nearly double the figure previously claimed.
The Mod said it has no idea on when, where and how the memory sticks were lost.
The official total is now 658 laptops stolen, with another 89 lost. Just 32 have been recovered. (more)
Solution 1
Solution 2
Cell Phone Warning from India
Any smart phone - including Blackberry, Windows Mobile, iPhone and Symbian phones - can be hacked by a nerd with a little bit of code and some cunning. And they don't stop at data and identity theft alone. Nor are they content with unleashing viruses on the operating system of your mobile. (Even Bluetooth makes your phone a potential target here.)
New Age mischief makers have learnt how to bug your phone and remote-control it. They can steal your bank information, send out a mischievous SMS to your girlfriend (who might just dump you!), copy your top-secret files or simply spy on every call/SMS you make from your phone. In fact, they can even 'modify' your SMSes before these are sent out to your contacts - and you wouldn't even know it.
That's not all. Hackers can also use your phone to spy on you by switching it on. They can activate the camera and eavesdrop on your discussions during a business meeting, or while you are secretly negotiating a lucrative job offer with a rival company. What's more, they can even do an audio/video recording by sending an SMS command...
So what should a user do? A few simple steps could go a long way. Adopt a multi-layered security approach. Protect mobile devices with antivirus, firewall, anti-SMS spam, and data encryption technologies and install regular security updates to protect phones from viruses and other malware. And yes, don't click blindly on any SMS, for someone may just be spying on you on the sly. (more)
Employee Instant Messaging Ban
Nearly three-quarters of U.K. businesses have banned the use of instant messaging (IM) citing security concerns, reports IM supplier ProcessOne.
The research noted that 88% of IT directors were concerned about the security risks created by employees using Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger and other IM services, with 56% citing the loss of sensitive business information as a primary concern. (more)
This ban - also being seen in US companies - is easy to enforce on corporate-owned networks. But, what about IM via personal cellular and laptop devices? Enforcement may seem impossible if the employee can snag a WiFi signal from a nearby coffee shop, hotel or unsecured appearance point.
If controlling unauthorized employee communications is an issue you are trying to solve, call me for the solution.
The research noted that 88% of IT directors were concerned about the security risks created by employees using Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger and other IM services, with 56% citing the loss of sensitive business information as a primary concern. (more)
This ban - also being seen in US companies - is easy to enforce on corporate-owned networks. But, what about IM via personal cellular and laptop devices? Enforcement may seem impossible if the employee can snag a WiFi signal from a nearby coffee shop, hotel or unsecured appearance point.
If controlling unauthorized employee communications is an issue you are trying to solve, call me for the solution.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Security Director Alert - Track Missing Laptops
...for FREE!
A security friend at [a very large] Corporation contacted me this week about laptop losses. His company experienced "a dramatic increase in the past year" - primarily when employees traveled on business.
He was studying the problem. Was this just street crime, or was his company being targeted for industrial espionage reasons?
I pointed him to pertinent Security Scrapbook articles. The trend is clear, but what about a simple solution?
Here it is (assuming you have already done encryption and employee awareness training)...
Researchers at the University of Washington and the University of California, San Diego, have launched a new laptop tracking service, called Adeona that is free and private.
Here's how it works: A user downloads the free client software onto a laptop. That software then starts anonymously sending encrypted notes about the computer's whereabouts to servers on the Internet. If the laptop ever goes missing, the user downloads another program, enters a username and password, and then picks up this information from the servers, specifically a free storage service that has been around for several years, called OpenDHT.
The Mac version of Adeona even uses a freeware program called isightcapture to take a snapshot of whomever is using the computer. (more)
A security friend at [a very large] Corporation contacted me this week about laptop losses. His company experienced "a dramatic increase in the past year" - primarily when employees traveled on business.
He was studying the problem. Was this just street crime, or was his company being targeted for industrial espionage reasons?
I pointed him to pertinent Security Scrapbook articles. The trend is clear, but what about a simple solution?
Here it is (assuming you have already done encryption and employee awareness training)...
Researchers at the University of Washington and the University of California, San Diego, have launched a new laptop tracking service, called Adeona that is free and private.
Here's how it works: A user downloads the free client software onto a laptop. That software then starts anonymously sending encrypted notes about the computer's whereabouts to servers on the Internet. If the laptop ever goes missing, the user downloads another program, enters a username and password, and then picks up this information from the servers, specifically a free storage service that has been around for several years, called OpenDHT.
The Mac version of Adeona even uses a freeware program called isightcapture to take a snapshot of whomever is using the computer. (more)
Security Oddballs - Airplane Trap Door and More
Some security inventions are truly useful and will undoubtedly save lives, whereas others are so bizarre that one wonders how in the world they got patented. This list is about the latter...Behold the Top 10 Strangest Anti-Terrorism Patents! (more)
The New Jersey Ninja
Officials in Barnegat briefly locked down five schools in the township Wednesday because... a librarian said a man dressed as a ninja, carrying a large sword, was running through the woods... the man (a camp counselor) wearing a karate gi, was carrying a plastic sword and was attending a party at a local middle school. (more)
"Don't have a karate gi?
How about a nice tie?"
The Walking Timebomb Tie"This is our first in a series of 'Concealed Weapons' neckties. They are each double printed - a more subtle graphic is on the front only giving a slight clue to a more "loaded" graphic hidden on the back. The second image is concealed on the reverse until the wearer pulls it out for show and tell - or keeps it a secret to his/her self." (more)
George Carlin on Airport Security (Not safe for work.)
Unbreakable Fighting Umbrella Splits Watermelons, Defends Presidents
The entourage of the Philippine president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, has an unusual secret weapon. Her security team defends the head of the government with umbrellas. Not ordinary umbrellas, but unbreakable fighting umbrellas. Watch the video to see the combat-brolly in action, and marvel as Thomas Kurz ("the world's foremost expert on flexibility training") viciously splits a watermelon in two. (more) (more)
Spy News (with Devil Ring Security Alert)
You Could Be An International Spy ...and not know it!
J. Reece Roth, an electrical engineering professor at the University of Tennessee, passed along a research paper to Sirous Nourgostar, a graduate student from Iran working under his supervision. It contained details on refined plasma actuator technology, which uses ionized gas to improve aircraft control. Roth was doing research on flight performance for a U.S. Air Force contractor and had relied on the assistance of Nourgostar and of Xin Dai, a Chinese national also studying under him... bad idea.
Roth, who pleaded not guilty, got entangled in a little-known area of export law that is alarming big business and scientific researchers. It covers transfers of controlled technological information to foreigners on U.S. soil. The transfers are considered exports because they are "deemed" to be going to the country where the recipient is a citizen. (more)
Want to Be A Spy ...and know it!
Britain's secret spy agency, home to the very white and very male 007, is hunting for women and minorities to tackle global terrorism. More than 20,000 people have applied since MI6 began its open recruiting campaign about a year ago... (more)
Spying Has Its Down Side ...know it!
A former Hewlett-Packard Co. vice president faces up to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets from his former employer, IBM. (more)
A federal judge sentenced a former Pentagon analyst to 57 months in prison for his role in providing China with classified defense information. (more)
A French journalist was charged with revealing manufacturing secrets after a car magazine published photos of a Renault model three years before it was to be rolled out in dealer showrooms... Renault filed suit for industrial espionage in July last year after photographs of its latest-generation Megane, a small family model and one of Europe's most popular cars, ran in Auto Plus. (more)
Still Wanna Be A Spy? ...no!
"Ok, you're free to go."
...yes!
Then you will probably want a "Ring of the devil" in your kit.
"There has been quite some speculation about this video (YouTube) of a magnetic ring that is used to open some models of Uhlmann & Zacher lock. Now, it is confirmed by the company itself the trick works." (more)
J. Reece Roth, an electrical engineering professor at the University of Tennessee, passed along a research paper to Sirous Nourgostar, a graduate student from Iran working under his supervision. It contained details on refined plasma actuator technology, which uses ionized gas to improve aircraft control. Roth was doing research on flight performance for a U.S. Air Force contractor and had relied on the assistance of Nourgostar and of Xin Dai, a Chinese national also studying under him... bad idea.
Roth, who pleaded not guilty, got entangled in a little-known area of export law that is alarming big business and scientific researchers. It covers transfers of controlled technological information to foreigners on U.S. soil. The transfers are considered exports because they are "deemed" to be going to the country where the recipient is a citizen. (more)
Want to Be A Spy ...and know it!
Britain's secret spy agency, home to the very white and very male 007, is hunting for women and minorities to tackle global terrorism. More than 20,000 people have applied since MI6 began its open recruiting campaign about a year ago... (more)
Spying Has Its Down Side ...know it!
A former Hewlett-Packard Co. vice president faces up to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to stealing trade secrets from his former employer, IBM. (more)
A federal judge sentenced a former Pentagon analyst to 57 months in prison for his role in providing China with classified defense information. (more)
A French journalist was charged with revealing manufacturing secrets after a car magazine published photos of a Renault model three years before it was to be rolled out in dealer showrooms... Renault filed suit for industrial espionage in July last year after photographs of its latest-generation Megane, a small family model and one of Europe's most popular cars, ran in Auto Plus. (more)
Still Wanna Be A Spy? ...no!
"Ok, you're free to go."
...yes!
Then you will probably want a "Ring of the devil" in your kit.
"There has been quite some speculation about this video (YouTube) of a magnetic ring that is used to open some models of Uhlmann & Zacher lock. Now, it is confirmed by the company itself the trick works." (more)
Monday, July 14, 2008
Industrial Espionage - Russia vs. United Kingdom
The British Foreign Office confirmed on Friday that Russia has accused the British Embassy's top trade official in Moscow of espionage.
On Thursday, Russia's Interfax news agency reported that the head of the British Embassy's trade and investment sector, Christopher Bowers, was believed to be a senior British intelligence officer.
The British Foreign Office has confirmed that the accused diplomat was the acting head of the embassy's trade and investment section. (more)
On Thursday, Russia's Interfax news agency reported that the head of the British Embassy's trade and investment sector, Christopher Bowers, was believed to be a senior British intelligence officer.
The British Foreign Office has confirmed that the accused diplomat was the acting head of the embassy's trade and investment section. (more)
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