http://www.spybusters.com/ Eavesdropping, spying trends, surveillance gadgets, privacy laws, espionage stories, TSCM, security tips, FutureWatch predictions and items from Kevin's travels, it's all here. All geared to keeping his client family at least one step ahead, and mildly amused. Feeder 1.2 http://reinventedsoftware.com/feeder/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss en-us 2006 - Kevin D. Murray murray@spybusters.com security@stones.com Fri, 15 Dec 2006 13:15:12 -0500 Fri, 15 Dec 2006 13:15:12 -0500 http://www.cs.washington.edu/research/systems/privacy.html a sensor which is placed in the sole of your left Nike+ shoe and a receiver which plugs into the bottom of the iPod Nano. The sensor in your shoe detects when you take steps (while walking or jogging) and transmits this information to the receiver.

When you walk or run the Nike+iPod sensor in your shoe will transmit messages using a wireless radio. These messages contain a unique identifier that can be detected from 60 feet away. This information is potentially private because it can reveal where you are, even when you'd prefer for a bad person to not know your location.

From Nike... Simply slip the Nike+ sensor into the Air Zoom Moire shoe pocket, or any other Nike+ Ready shoe, and head out. The Nike+ sensor slips unobtrusively into a pocket under the sockliner. Waterproof and virtually unbreakable. $29.00]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 13:15:09 -0500 http://www.whiterockdefence.com "Tapping into mobile phones is a serious matter."
Mr Justice Goss in the Clive Goodman case
A reporter for Britain's top selling tabloid newspaper pleaded guilty to tapping into the mobile phones of the aides of the Prince Wales and his son, Prince William. Clive Goodman, the News of the World royal editor was caught telephoning the mobiles of the royal family, waiting for the voicemail and punch in the security code.

Espionage alert to Bahrain firms
"Espionage occurs on a daily basis and most of us don't even know it."
Mr Richard Clark at the ASIS International Conference in Middle East Industrial espionage and organised crime are the biggest threats facing companies in Bahrain and the Middle East, said a former counter-terrorism chief Richard Clark, who served as a senior White House adviser for current President George W Bush and his two predecessors.

The Spies Among Us
"Corporate espionage is not a legal means to compete with rivals." Wallack, Todd Companies' efforts to collect intelligence on their competitors span a wide range of activities, often as simple as calling an employee at a competing company and asking for product information, department data, and information on colleagues' duties. However, competitive intelligence providers note that corporate espionage, a technique using deception or theft to obtain information about companies and products, is not a legal means of maintaining a competitive advantage over rivals.

Met tapped senior officer's calls
"Met's internal tapping into their staff was unlawful." The Metropolitan Police unlawfully tapped phone calls of one of their own senior officers, Chief Superintendent Ali Dizaei, legal adviser to the National Black Police Association (NBPA).

"Corporate and government security professionals met in NYC to discuss counter terrorist solutions in capital cities"
"Industrial espionage is now used as one of the intelligence gathering tools for the purposes of terrorism."
Dave Evans at the Global Aware International Counter Terrorism Conference Global Aware International and HSBC held a Counter Terrorism Conference in New York at the end of last month. It was stressed that industrial espionage is now used as one of the intelligence gathering tools for the purposes of terrorism.

News clips courtesy of Whiterock, a trusted and reputable counter espionage and Critical Information Defence business operating from the UK since 1995. ]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 12:12:06 -0500 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/dolphins/content/sports/epaper/2006/12/13/a1c_fins_1213.html
The buzz since Miami's 21-0 win is about how the Dolphins managed to decipher those calls. Two Dolphins defenders said the team acquired game tape that included audio of Brady making calls, The Palm Beach Post reported Monday.

(Nick) Saban (the coach) said the Dolphins simply used past telecasts.

One former NFL general manager, who wished to remain anonymous, isn't sure the Dolphins could get that much information off a TV telecast.

]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 11:47:24 -0500 http://www.playfuls.com/news_09_1259-Vodafone-Greece-Fined-76-Million-Euros-Over-Bugging-Scandal.html fined Vodafone Greece 76 million euros over a bugging scandal that involved eavesdropping on high-ranking officials including the prime minister, Greek media reports said Thursday.

The fine was imposed for for failing to protect the network from unknown hackers, and for obstructing the investigation.

Why this is important to YOU!
Remember this phrase... "failing to protect"
Every corporation has a duty to protect their assets - even from eavesdropping.
Remember this phrase... "If you don't protect, it is neglect."
A call to us might just save you a few million dollars/euros. ]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 11:38:35 -0500 http://www.law.uiuc.edu/news/article.asp?id=910 in cooperation with WCIA-TV (CBS), produces a biweekly 30-minute television program "Illinois Law," on legal issues in the news. ...

Episode 3. "Wiretapping, Terrorism, and Private Lives"
(Professor Richard McAdams, Professor Jacqueline Ross, former US District Attorney, Marshall Stone, FBI Special Agent) - The history of Wiretapping, the FBI and the FISA Warrant; How to obtain a warrant and how to use it; Stories from the field; The effects of 9/11; Wiretapping and a citizen's Constitutional Rights.]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 11:24:47 -0500 http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-pellicano13dec13,1,1800861.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california&ctrack=1&cset=true one of his co-defendants pleaded guilty to using the former private eye to wiretap a Beverly Hills businessman six years ago.

In an appearance before U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer, Daniel Nicherie also pleaded guilty to three other felony counts of defrauding the Beverly Hills businessman and others through pension fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.

Nicherie, 46, is the fifth person to plead guilty to having Pellicano wiretap his clients' courtroom adversaries or business rivals. ]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2006 11:18:34 -0500 http://www.spymuseum.org/calendar/kidspy_programs.asp January 2007

KidSpy™ Workshop
Spy Gadgetry
Sunday, 7 January; 10:30 am – 12:30 pm

February 2007

KidSpy™ Workshop
Operation Night Spy: Espionage in the Dark
Thursday, 22 February; 7–9 pm

March 2007

KidSpy™ Overnight
Operation Secret Slumber
Saturday, 10 March – Sunday, 11 March; 7 pm – 10 am

August 2007

KidSpy™ Summer Day Camp
Operation Beat the Heat
Monday, 6 August – Friday, 10 August; 9 am – 3 pm
]]> Thu, 14 Dec 2006 12:01:37 -0500 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Chandigarh/10-month-old_sting_haunts_MC_chief/articleshow/780314.cms in this case it was a politician conducting a sting operation on his colleague.

Naturally, when Tilak Raj Kataria went public with the video footage of a sting operation on Kulwant Singh, the media was curious. Never mind the unexplained delay of more than 10 months to release the CD.

The 15-minutes video footage, released on Monday evening, shows Kulwant Singh, spouse of MC president, Manveer Gill, talking to Tilak Raj Kataria.

Kataria has alleged that Kulwant Singh had offered a bribe worth Rs eight lakh to Kataria, in order to get the support of Kataria's wife Anjala and that of Sharda Gupta, who represents Sector 12A. Anjala Kataria is a councillor, representing Sector 20.

Kataria, a former general secretary of the local unit of the Congress, informed the media that the operation was carried out through a spycam fitted in a sofa in his house. ]]> Wed, 13 Dec 2006 09:09:41 -0500 http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/10518538/detail.html 19-year-old man is in custody for using his camera phone to capture images of a woman while she was in the bathroom, according to the Ann Arbor News.

Police said a woman was using the restroom at the clubhouse in Glencoe Hills Apartments on Friday when she said she heard the door open and saw the camera dangling over the top of the stall.

Employees of the apartments chased and held down the man until police arrived.

Investigators confiscated the man's phone, and are seeking a warrant to crack the password that's prohibiting them from viewing the images, according to the paper's reports.

The man was released during the investigation. If charged, the man faces electronic eavesdropping, which is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.]]> Wed, 13 Dec 2006 09:02:24 -0500 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116590944450747481.html?mod=hps_us_at_glance_columnists and businesses...

Elsewhere in the region, former secret-service agents hold important government posts. Romania's top environmental official, Silvian Ionescu, for example was once a senior officer at Romania's secret police force, the New York Times notes. Romania's secret services have been reorganized and many of the pre-1989 leaders replaced, but many lower-level agents remain and some now have ties to important businessmen, the Times says.]]> Tue, 12 Dec 2006 10:01:46 -0500 http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/70849.aspx?option=print your employer is probably spying on you -- keeping track of all your electronic communications.

It's not only legal - the government actually requires companies to do it.

Nine out of 10 employers monitor their workers electronic activities, according to an E-Policy Institute survey. And while it's perfectly legal, it's not always welcome.

One woman employee said, "You just kind of feel the sense that somebody is watching you all the time."

"It's almost like a police-state mentality," said a male employee.

Fred Lane, author of the "Naked Employee-How Technology Compromises Workplace Privacy," said, "Employers can track everything you do, from a single keystroke to hours of web surfing."

But all this electronic spying is getting some in trouble.

Last year, more than 30 percent of U.S. employers let a worker go after using a company computer for personal reasons. ]]> Mon, 11 Dec 2006 20:20:53 -0500 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/4391508.html cheated over an invention... Jackson chained the doors behind him, grabbed a hostage and started shooting, as he ranted to witnesses that he had been deceived over his invention, a toilet for a truck...]]> Mon, 11 Dec 2006 13:44:30 -0500 http://allafrica.com/stories/200612081007.html Botswana Police Service is in the process of acquiring surveillance technology to enable the police to listen in on electronic communications.

The covert system will enable the law enforcement institution to intercept cellphone communication as well as Internet services. However, it has been revealed that many of the stakeholders have not been informed of the initiative.]]> Mon, 11 Dec 2006 11:54:12 -0500 http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/worldbiz/archives/2006/12/09/2003339775 Computer giant Hewlett-Packard Co (HP) has agreed to pay US$14.5 million to settle civil charges linked to a boardroom espionage scandal, California state officials said on Thursday.

]]> Sat, 09 Dec 2006 07:09:41 -0500 https://www.alibinetwork.com/index.jsp Alibi Network is a cutting edge full service agency providing alibis and excused absences as well as assistance with a variety of sensitive issues. We view ourselves as professional advisors who understand our clients’ unique situations. We explore various approaches with our clients and implement the best solution based on each individual case. We understand your need for privacy and we are completely discreet and confidential.

We all encounter sensitive situations in our life. These may include family problems, social issues, work or financial difficulties. When you don’t want to involve your close friends and relatives for privacy reasons it is time to contact Alibi Network. Let us be your Privacy Partners."

Actually, we are your best Privacy Partner. Just thought you should know about this in case someone you know is an Alibinetwork member.]]> Fri, 08 Dec 2006 11:38:46 -0500 http://www.11alive.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=88464
It turns out that District Attorney Paul Howard has been monitoring everything going on in the courtroom, by closed circuit television in his office. The defense wondered aloud in court whether Howard has been able to monitor private conversations at the defense table.

...Scott Davis's attorneys complained that the cameras and microphones installed in the courtroom for the trial have not always been turned off during recesses, as the judge had ordered them to be. So the attorneys are worried that Howard may have been able to hear defense attorneys privately discussing their strategies.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Tom Campbell said he would think about whether to declare a mistrial, ... This is the 10th mistrial the defense has requested...

DA Paul Howard issued this statement:
...the District Attorney has access to is the exact same feed the media have access to in the press room—nothing more, nothing less.
(but, was anything heard that was not supposed to be heard)

The pictures and sounds made available to the District Attorney are the same pictures and sounds made available to the public through the media.
(but, was anything heard that was not supposed to be heard)

There are NO secret cameras, microphones or recording devises of any kind.
(we all know that, but, was anything heard that was not supposed to be heard)

]]> Fri, 08 Dec 2006 11:05:50 -0500 http://www.commercialappeal.com/mca/local/article/0,2845,MCA_25340_5195550,00.html Sheriff's office completes probe at Homeland Security

The bugging of the Memphis Homeland Security office will not yield any criminal charges, officials said Wednesday.

(whattasurprise)]]> Thu, 07 Dec 2006 09:15:38 -0500 http://www.audiocubes.com/category/Gadgets,+Games_Gizmos/product/Thanko_Spy_Disk_With_Card_Reader.html
Thanko presents all new Spy Disk With Card Reader features a high quality pen and USB memory disk combined as one. THANKO Spy Disk With Card Reader also has a card reader slot for SD/MMC card. SD/MMC card and Ricin tip not included.]]> Mon, 04 Dec 2006 10:51:11 -0500 http://wcbstv.com/investigates/local_story_333224110.html
A natural thought from drivers who on any given day deal with some of the worst traffic in the country -- average commute time 90 minutes -- is "this guy must be headed to a serious emergency."

Or is he?

CBS 2 caught up to one such unmarked car in a heck of a hurry.

(See the video clip for the Extortionography answer.)]]> Fri, 01 Dec 2006 13:43:04 -0500 http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/states/pennsylvania/16128329.htm The room resembled a Radio Shack more than a Delaware County courtroom.

During sometimes tedious testimony yesterday, prosecutors spent most of their time introducing many of the items as evidence found in the two offices used by former Folcroft Borough Manager Anthony Truscello at the municipal building.

Truscello is accused of illegal video surveillance of the police department and faces charges of tampering with public records, invasion of privacy, criminal conspiracy, and wiretapping.

Prosecutors have said Truscello, 69, of Wallingford, and his codefendant, former council vice president Joseph Zito, 52, hid cameras to discredit former Police Chief Ed Christie, who had planned to run against Truscello's daughter, Deborah, for her seat as a magisterial judge.

Truscello and Zito say they were trying to verify that officers were sleeping on the job during their overnight shift.

One video introduced into evidence was a pornographic movie, found in the same desk drawer in Truscello's office as a tape that showed Folcroft's only female officer, Leslie McLean, undressing in the police locker room.

"Did you view that movie?" E. Marc Costanzo, a senior deputy attorney general for Pennsylvania, asked Detective Thomas H. Worrilow Jr., of the county special investigations unit. "I did, on fast-forward," Worrilow responded, eliciting a burst of laughter.]]> Fri, 01 Dec 2006 10:57:52 -0500 http://greatreporter.com/mambo/content/view/1344/2/ Scanit says web phone installations in corporate environments have little or no protection against VoIP wiretapping...

“Throughout the Middle East, the installations we have seen have not had strong security controls in place,” Scanit engineer Sheran Gunasekera explains.

“Primarily, the reason for this has been the fact that the system integrator or implementer had not paid much attention to the security of the entire setup.”

It is possible, Scanit (www.scanit.net) says, for an internal employee of the organisation, to intercept voice conversations and re-route calls outside of the firm’s network.

]]> Fri, 01 Dec 2006 09:07:17 -0500 http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,1960278,00.html a sustained bugging campaign targeting two government ministers, a newspaper editor, an England footballer and a string of celebrities prompted calls yesterday for tougher sentences for the buying and selling of confidential personal data.

The government's information commissioner spoke out after Clive Goodman, the News of the World's royal editor, admitted at the Old Bailey yesterday to tapping into mobile phones belonging to aides of the Prince of Wales and his son, Prince William, over a 20 month period.

Goodman, 48, faces up to two years in jail for conspiracy to intercept communications contrary to the Criminal Law Act 1977. Mr Justice Goss agreed to remand him on unconditional bail for pre-sentence reports but he warned: "I am not ruling out any options. It's a very serious matter."

Glenn Mulcaire, a former footballer turned private detective who was hired by Goodman, admitted the same charge. He also pleaded guilty to five charges of unlawfully intercepting voicemail messages left by Max Clifford, the publicist, Skylet Andrew, who is agent for the footballer Sol Campbell, Gordon Taylor, chairman of the Professional Footballers' Association, the MP Simon Hughes and the model Elle Macpherson. Fourteen other charges were allowed to lie on file.

But the high profile figures named in the criminal charges were the tip of the iceberg, legal sources say. Detectives from Scotland Yard's counter terrorism unit, who investigated the tapping, uncovered a string of other targets: figures including two government ministers, footballers, a newspaper editor, celebrities and models.]]> Fri, 01 Dec 2006 08:53:47 -0500 http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/16117626.htm charges stemming from the wiretapping case against Hollywood private investigator Anthony Pellicano.

The grand jury returned the three-count indictment against Joann Wiggan, 52, on Nov. 22 but it wasn't released until Tuesday by the U.S. attorney's office. If convicted of the three perjury counts, Wiggan faces a maximum of 15 years in prison.]]> Wed, 29 Nov 2006 11:44:34 -0500 http://www.thinkgeek.com/gadgets/electronic/8c52/?cpg=42H

If you find one of these, relax, it is not a bug.

Here is what you have...
"The Annoy-a-tron ...very effective at disturbing that guy in the sales department or your "friend" down the hall. With its thin design and embedded magnet for easy hiding, the Annoy-a-tron can be placed in a variety of locations. Select one of the three sound choices (2 kHz, 12 kHz, or alternating) and push the switch to the on position. Place it in a proper hiding spot and let the "fun" begin.

The Annoy-a-tron generates a short (but very annoying, hence the name) beep every few minutes. Your unsuspecting target will have a hard time 'timing' the location of the sound because the beeps will vary in intervals ranging from 2 to 8 minutes. The 2kHz sound is generically annoying enough, but if you really really want to aggravate somebody, select the 12 kHz sound. Trust us. The higher frequency and slight 'electronic noise' built into that soundbyte will make a full-grown Admin wonder where his packets are.

Assuming you have done your part in selecting a suitable hiding location for the Annoy-a-tron, it will do its part to drive your co-workers slowly mad with its short and seemingly random beeps. And when someone does locate the Annoy-a-tron, they're really not going to know what it is - which is almost as much fun as watching them search for it. Muahaha."

Unfortunately, some bugs look very much like this little bugger... so keep our number handy.]]> Wed, 29 Nov 2006 10:52:22 -0500 http://www.commercialappeal.com/mca/local/article/0,2845,MCA_25340_5176391,00.html Extortionography Example # 382

TN - In the wake of a report investigating bugging devices found in the local Homeland Security office, two Shelby County employees face disciplinary action.

The report, which was released Tuesday, primarily focused on how erroneous information was released to the media that indicated the FBI conducted the bug sweep.

The report didn't discuss who placed the listening devices -- revealed as four "Safety 1st" baby monitors -- or what information they recorded, if any.

"We still have the case under investigation. We hope to wrap it up this week," department spokesman Steve Shular said. "So far, the case has not revealed any criminal wrongdoing." (WTF!?!?)

The controversy erupted in late October after Fox 13 News said it had 27 hours of secretly recorded material from the Homeland Security office.

Former interim administrator John Todd admitted using a pocket device to record meetings, but denied any knowledge of the ceiling bugs. (WTF!?!?) ]]> Wed, 29 Nov 2006 10:28:52 -0500 http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/subversive-managers-lose-5m-claim/2006/11/28/1164476205158.html an assistant who secretly taped board meetings have failed in their bid to sue a former employer for wrongful dismissal.

Alleged death threats, phone bugging operations and under-the-table payments to underworld figure Mick Gatto to smooth relations with building unions were among the more titillating revelations to emerge.

Justice Mandie also condemned the conduct of the two executives over the payment of $234,650 to Mr Gatto's company Arbitrations & Mediations and the bugging of Primelife employees' telephones without their consent. Ms Porter amassed 1.3 million minutes of recordings from 65,400 phone calls she taped between July 2001 and June 2003.

Justice Mandie said he believed that Ms Porter's eavesdropping was for the sole purpose of gathering information on colleagues she believed to have conflicts with Mr Sent, rather that to identify a "leak", as she had previously claimed in court.]]> Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:10:44 -0500 http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20061127/sc_livescience/computerdetectsangerbeforefightsbreakout You can tell when you hear someone is really angry—and get out of the way. Now Sigard, a new software package developed by Sound Intelligence, can also detect verbal aggression with a high level of accuracy.

Combined with closed circuit television systems, Sigard can quickly notify security personnel about loud, angry people in outdoor public spaces, public transportation, nightclubs and bars.

Sigard Sound Intelligence software imitates the way that humans deal with sound, splitting it into different frequencies with varying amounts of energy. Just as a person can immediately detect anger and aggression in the midst of background noise, Sound Intelligence software "listens" for the same parameters that humans use in detecting aggressive speech.

This system is already in place in a few locations in the Netherlands. Police in the UK are also considering installing the system.]]> Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:15:31 -0500 http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061127/LIFE05/611270301 Employers are getting better tools to keep watch on their workers.

Employers have long warned their workers that company e-mail, Internet use and even phone calls are subject to monitoring.

But what many employees don't realize is that spying is going high-tech. In the spirit of James Bond wizardry, companies are tracking workers' whereabouts through Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite, implanting employees with microchips with their knowledge and hiring private investigators to check up on what employees are really doing at work.]]> Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:11:10 -0500 http://www.theolympian.com/101/story/52768.html You don't need 007's "Q" to listen in on coded broadcasts that are transmitted to spies in faraway places.

Anybody can tune in to the world's top spy agencies talking to operatives in harm's way. All you need is a cheap shortwave radio receiver - the kind available at any drugstore.

Tune it to 6855 kHz or 8010 on the hour. You might hear a girlish voice repeating strings of numbers in a Spanish monotone. "Nueve, uno, nueve, tres, cinco-cinco, quatro, cinco, tres, dos ..." went one seemingly harmless message heard last week on a Grundig radio. It was the Cuban Intelligence Directorate or Russian FSB broadcasting coded instructions from Havana to spies inside the U.S.

Turn the dial up to 11545 kHz and you might hear a few notes of an obscure English folk song called the "Lincolnshire Poacher," followed by a voice repeating strings of numbers. That's believed to be British MI6 broadcasting from Cyprus.

On 6840 kHz, you may hear a voice reading groups of letters. That's a station nicknamed "E10," which is suspected to be Israel's Mossad intelligence.

Chris Smolinski runs SpyNumbers.com and the "Spooks" e-mail list, where "number stations" hobbyists dutifully log hundreds of clandestine shortwave messages transmitted every month.]]> Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:09:09 -0500 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116466744405433753.html?mod=djemTMB What to Do When They Don't Hire You, But Steal Your Ideas...

It's painful enough when an employer rejects you. But some add insult to injury by stealing material you prepared to promote your candidacy. How should you cope? There's no surefire cure...

No one knows how often companies rip off original material from applicants. But job tryouts requiring submission of business plans are increasingly common, reports Gary E. Hayes, a managing partner at Hayes Brunswick & Partners, a New York organizational and management consultancy. He predicts the trend will persist because bosses prefer to pick people who "begin to execute very rapidly."

You can take several steps to guard against possible employer theft during the interview process. Offer samples of the outstanding work you have completed rather than craft something new. If the hiring manager insists on fresh samples, show off your brainpower without giving away all the goods. "Exclude necessary details that would then make [a proposal] impossible to implement," says Richard Bayer, chief operating officer of the Five O'Clock Club, a career-counseling network in New York.

If you do submit a plan, take a strong stance to protect your ideas. Whenever you express yourself in writing, "the copyright attaches at that point," notes Alan Weisberg, an intellectual-property attorney for Christopher & Weisberg in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He suggests adding a copyright symbol to the report, plus a confidentiality warning stating: "This information is being provided solely for the purposes of the job interview" and may not be used for other purposes without the author's permission.]]> Tue, 28 Nov 2006 08:56:29 -0500 Global Tek
Sigillu
Trust Digital
Information Security Corporation
]]> Mon, 27 Nov 2006 17:13:15 -0500 http://autonews.com it may have learned more from the secret company documents he brought along with him. ... Shibuya's actions were so galling to Hyundai engineers that one of them anonymously leaked word of it to Toyota this year. ... Shibuya ordered her to make copies of numerous Toyota documents and mail them to Hyundai headquarters in Korea. ... "It was not a few documents. It was binders and binders of information." The individual spoke anonymously for fear of reprisal from the company. ... "It was technical reports and their European quality-control model." It was high-protein stuff, said another Hyundai employee. "This wasn't just paint codes," he said. "This was something that should have been kept confidential." ... Law enforcement sources say corporate espionage cases - like those of recently indicted former executives at Metaldyne Corp. - are part of a growing problem.

Perhaps the most famous theft of automotive intellectual property involved the departure of General Motors purchasing czar J. Ignacio Lopez for Volkswagen in 1993. ... But Lopez's actions came before the invention of powerful computing tools that are now common. The 20 boxes of data Lopez hustled past security would now fit into a multigigabyte flash drive that would fit in his pocket. ]]> Mon, 27 Nov 2006 15:35:21 -0500 http://www.contractoruk.com/news/002971.html powerful enough to record people’s conversations up to 100 yards away.

Ultra sensitive microphones may be attached to surveillance systems across the UK, so law enforcement has the chance to thwart aggressive behaviour before it turns violent.

Councils and transport authorities have also reportedly expressed interest in installing the new systems before the London Olympics in 2012.]]> Mon, 27 Nov 2006 08:36:46 -0500 http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=spyware&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8 What is spyware?
What is a keystroke logger?

A few examples...
SpyGatorPro (monitor all computer activity)
KGB Keylogger
KGB Spy (keylogger)
KeyPhantom (hardware keylogger PC & Mac) KGB Free Key Logger
Keylogger King Pro
Keylogger King Home
Free Keylogger King
SnoopStick Remote Monitor (remote monitoring using a USB flashstick)
Numara™ Track-It! (logging and tracking)
WebWatcher (remote web tracking)
Keystroke Recorder
TypeRecorder (keylogger for Macintosh)
Spector Pro (monitors and sends out alerts)
Spector (Macintosh version)
eBlaster (email/chat/IM snitch)
Spector CNE (business employee monitor)
Spector 360 (business monitoring & reporting)
KeyGhost RoboNanny (spy microphone)
Advanced Call Recorder (phone call recorder)
Telephone Spy (phone call recorder)
CSSS Video Pro (computer video spy with motion detection)

How to identify and eradicate SpyWare...
Lots of folks will be happy to sell you their solutions.]]> Sun, 26 Nov 2006 11:47:18 -0500 http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1155AP_CIA_Recruitment.html
The CIA wants to hire them all.]]> Sun, 26 Nov 2006 10:38:49 -0500 http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/7464/127/ penetrate firewalls: experts emphasise the potential security risks of the Skype peer-to-peer protocol and say the use of Skype in a corporate network significantly increases traffic volumes. One company claims to have some tools to stop it...]]> Sun, 26 Nov 2006 10:17:54 -0500 http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061124/NEWS/61124001/-1/NEWS01
Police say Gonzalez (husband) was stalking Claudio (wife) and had been recording his wife's phone calls without her knowledge.

Gonzalez is charged with criminal homicide, being a person not allowed to own, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms, endangering the welfare of children, stalking, recklessly endangering another, simple assault, and wiretapping. ]]> Sun, 26 Nov 2006 10:14:13 -0500 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15820017/ China is the No. 1 counterintelligence threat to the United States," says Dave Szady, the FBI's former top counterespionage official. "It's a very large threat, it's pervasive and it's extremely effective."

U.S. officials say there are now 400 active investigations here involving illegal exports to China — more than any other country.

"We've seen a significant spike in attempts to illegally acquire U.S. technology," says Stephen Bogni, with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

...officials warn that U.S. corporations and universities are not sufficiently on guard to protect against this growing and pervasive threat.

The Chinese government tells NBC News that it does not engage in espionage in the U.S., calling such accusations irresponsible.]]> Wed, 22 Nov 2006 15:06:57 -0500 http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/16061230.htm wiretapping trial of Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano and several other co-defendants to next Aug. 22.

U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer had originally scheduled trial for February, but the case against Pellicano and six other defendants has been delayed by a lengthy discovery process.]]> Wed, 22 Nov 2006 08:56:07 -0500 http://store.lukwerks.com/?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=24&aliaspath=/Home/Buy-LukWerks/Store&__utma=1.1377360904.1159133702.1159133702.1159223907.2&__utmb=1&__utmc=1&__utmz=1.1159133702.1.1.utmccn%3D(organic)%7Cutmcsr%3Dgoogle%7Cutmctr%3DAndrew%2BHartsfield%2Blukwerks%7Cutmcmd%3Dorganic&__utmv=-&__utmk=44088869
WiLife Spy Cam Alarm Clock Peeps Digitally, Over Powerline
"Due to high demand, this product is on back order.
We expect to ship back orders around January 15, 2007."
]]> Tue, 21 Nov 2006 23:12:34 -0500 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601102&sid=aokSjnWRURsk&refer=uk A Russian former spy investigating the murder of a journalist who criticized President Vladimir Putin's policies is seriously ill after being poisoned in London.

Alexander Litvinenko, 41, was contaminated with the slow-acting toxin thallium, clinical toxicologist John Henry said in a statement outside University College Hospital...

Litvinenko told the British Broadcasting Corp. last week, before his condition worsened, that he began feeling ill on Nov. 1 after meeting with an informant at a Japanese sushi restaurant, Itsu, in London's Piccadilly. The man gave him papers containing the names of people who may have been involved in the killing of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, Litvinenko said.

Politkovskaya, 48, a prominent critic of Putin and Russian policy in Chechnya, was shot dead at her Moscow apartment building on Oct. 7.

Litvinenko, a former lieutenant colonel in Russia's FSB or Federal Security Service, successor to the KGB, claimed asylum in the U.K. six years ago and became an outspoken critic of the Kremlin over issues including the conflict in Chechnya. His poisoning echoes Cold War assassinations like that of Georgi Markov, a Bulgarian dissident who died after being spiked with a poison-tipped umbrella on a London street in 1978.

British newspapers including the Times identified Litvinenko's contact at the sushi restaurant as an Italian academic who, they reported, subsequently went into hiding, fearing for his life.

Doctors said, "Litvinenko's chances of survival were "50-50."]]> Mon, 20 Nov 2006 11:44:14 -0500 http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/bugging-tipoff-stepped-over-the-line/2006/11/20/1163871343182.html former corruption fighter Moira Rayner "stepped over the line through mateship" when she tipped off a dying friend that his mobile telephone was bugged as part of a corruption inquiry.

The friend, former clerk of parliament Laurie Marquet, immediately stopped using his telephone - frustrating and compromising the Corruption and Crime Commission inquiry, a Perth District Court jury was told yesterday.]]> Mon, 20 Nov 2006 11:28:40 -0500 http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-11/16/content_5338687.htm a robot that can help ensure security in public places. The robot, the first of its kind developed in China, is expected to go on sale within two or three months. ... Equipped with Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) and wide-angle cameras, it uses ultrasonic equipment to avoid obstacles and transmits information on suspect sights and noises, such as fires, to a controller. ...looking like a small car, is 90 centimeters long, 55 centimeters wide and 75 centimeters high, and weighs 55 kilograms. (Get outtaline and it'll kneecap ya'.) ]]> Sun, 19 Nov 2006 18:46:43 -0500 http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article1988534.ece Using spycams, he dramatically exposes corruption in the world's largest democracy - and has even toppled its president. ]]> Sun, 19 Nov 2006 16:45:30 -0500 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15789433/site/newsweek/ "Eavesdropping is an underrated form of information gathering."

]]> Sun, 19 Nov 2006 10:23:10 -0500 http://www.taliyanews.ir/en/news/fullstory.asp?n=3824 Offering detailed print of subscribers’ contacts, or SMS contents to non-senders is a crime, equals eavesdropping, and doers so will be referred to judiciary, said an MCCI official here Wednesday.

Managing Director of the Mobile Communications Company of Iran’s (MCCI) Supervision, Evaluation, and Responding to Complaints Department Teymour Karami added in an interview with the ICT’s CINA dispatch, “Such things might have happened in the past, but they will not happen in the future."]]> Sat, 18 Nov 2006 09:00:39 -0500 http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fbetabug.ch%2Fblogs%2Fch-athens%2F481 news sites, the Greek Information Security Authority ΑΔΑΕ (ADAE) has decided not to investigate Ericsson for their involvement in the wiretapping scandal that was revealed in February of this year. As the "reason" they state that the law does not give their agency the role to investigate the manufacturers of telecoms equipment. Apparently this decision came out of a 4-3 vote, where 2 of the minority votes were by specialists from the investigative unit of ADAE."
(It's Greek to me.)]]> Sat, 18 Nov 2006 08:51:37 -0500 http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/11/17/1163266756133.html
A New Zealand scientist believes he's captured a recording of the mystery hum that has been heard by scores of people living and in and around the city of Auckland.

(Here. Here. Hear it here.)]]> Sat, 18 Nov 2006 08:04:07 -0500 http://uk.news.yahoo.com/15112006/344/bond-real-agents-tell-radio-1.html
But they revealed there is a real-life Q testing spy gadgets. And they insisted the spying business can be dangerous but "quite glamorous". The unnamed male and female officer spoke to Radio 1 DJ Colin Murray for Wednesday night's show.

]]> Fri, 17 Nov 2006 13:27:21 -0500 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,29389-2453590,00.html bug cash machines and steal customers’ credit card secrets. (By wiretapping the phone line and recording the transmissions.)]]> Fri, 17 Nov 2006 12:34:49 -0500 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/11/16/webcam_trojan_scam/ ... as it may be watching you!

Spain - Two 17-year-olds were arrested in Alicante on Wednesday and charged with writing a Trojan horse that allowed them to control the webcams of compromised machines at a local college. The duo allegedly used potentially embarrassing footage obtained through the ruse to blackmail victims. ...

...not the first time Spanish police have faced webcam-related online crime, net security firm Sophos notes. In February 2005 a Spanish computer student was fined for spying on a young woman using her webcam, as well as monitoring her online chat conversations.

Related stories...
Peeping Tom Trojan suspect cuffed in Cyprus
Webcam Trojan perv gets slapped wrist
Webcam Trojan suspect arrested in Spain
Meet the Peeping Tom worm
"If your computer is infected and you have a webcam plugged in, then everything you do in front of the computer can be seen, and everything you say can be recorded." ]]> Fri, 17 Nov 2006 12:25:25 -0500 With a quick search one can find information and detailed plans for building many types of eavesdropping, wiretapping and bugging devices. One of the most intriguing projects is the "Laser Beam Eavesdropping" system.

Here is a brief list of what's out there...
Laser Eavesdropping Systems - What & How.
Laser Listening Schematic
Build A Laser Listening Device
Laser Listening Systems
Russian - Laser Listener
Another Russian - Laser Listener
Surveillance Electronic Circuit Schematics
and our contribution...
Laser Beam Eavesdropping - Si-fi Bugs? ]]> Fri, 17 Nov 2006 11:52:36 -0500 http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061116/LOCAL/61116009&SearchID=73263232338318 dismiss a felony wiretapping charge against Charlie Grapski, who was charged with taping Alachua City Manager Clovis Watson Jr. against his will in May.

Senior Judge Aymer "Buck" Curtain on Thursday dismissed the charge of illegal interception of wireless communications, a felony, against Grapski on the grounds that as a public official in a public office, Watson had no expectation of privacy. ]]> Fri, 17 Nov 2006 09:00:52 -0500 http://www.trackingtheworld.com/ ...or are you just happy to see me?

You can now be tracked with a cell phone!
Anywhere.
Any time.
(from the manufacturer's web site...)
"World Tracker SMS, affordable personal location. No external battery or antenna required, entire functioning GPS Tracker fits in the palm of your hand. Receive movement and location alerts through your cell phone or e-mail. Users can view or print driving reports with street addresses, and receive location alerts via e-mail or cell phone. Features an unmatched combination of maps, satellite images, and aerial photography to cover the entire planet."

(Yes, you can have us check your executives' vehicles for these little buggers, too.) ]]> Wed, 15 Nov 2006 10:50:31 -0500 http://nationaljournal.com/about/njweekly/stories/2006/1020nj3.htm TANGRAM

The false pattern recognition problems inherent in guilt-by-association investigation methods is finally being addressed... we hope.]]> Wed, 15 Nov 2006 10:23:09 -0500 http://www.spycamman.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=37&category_id=22&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1 This wireless, waterproof, privacy-invader pegged our Voyeurometer and made it smoke!

Sold as... "This great device can watch your bathroom and work as a radio with a mirror or discreet high resolution .1 lux color camera. Comes with a powerful 2.4 ghz usb compatible receiver and software to watch it wirelessly on your computer, or record to a vcr. or both!"

A security camera in the shower?!?!
What next...
Evidence collection bags to CSI who leaves hair in the soap?]]> Wed, 15 Nov 2006 10:07:31 -0500 http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061115/spw001.html?.v=43 spying on cell phone users has become child's play. Wilfried Hafner, CEO of SecurStar GmbH, has developed a Trojan horse, named "RexSpy", solely for demonstration purposes. The results are alarming. When the Trojan invades the system, the security vulnerabilities discovered by Hafner show the possibility of eavesdropping on any cell phone. (Of course, they offer a solution.)]]> Wed, 15 Nov 2006 09:24:27 -0500 http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=530093 Internet cameras let police peek into businesses

WI - Owner Linda Burg isn't expecting trouble at the Little Read Book store at 7603 W. State St. But she, and the police, are ready if it shows. Burg and the Wauwatosa Police Department are testing a new camera and surveillance system that lets the shopkeeper check in from anywhere, anytime over the Internet and, more important, gives police an inside view in real time in the event of an emergency.

Internet-based cameras are nothing new. But Wauwatosa police believe they are the first law-enforcement agency in Wisconsin to link them to their dispatch computers, allowing dispatchers and patrol officers to see what's going on inside an address en route to a 911 call.]]> Tue, 14 Nov 2006 12:22:55 -0500 http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2006/11/14/2003336260 Tue, 14 Nov 2006 10:08:49 -0500 http://www.memphisflyer.com/memphis/Content?oid=oid%3A21525 four electronic listening devices -- often called "bugs" -- were found above the ceiling tiles of the local office of Homeland Security, the department charged with protecting the United States from terrorism.

If that sounds like an all-too-brief assessment of a potentially life-threatening situation, that's because many of the details -- including the reason for and the perpetrator behind the bugging -- are uncertain. County officials initially indicated that the devices were found during an FBI sweep but later retracted that statement.

Kevin Murray is the founder of Murray Associates, an independent consulting firm specializing in audio eavesdropping, video voyeurism, and espionage countermeasures. He says if you think you have found a bug, do not...

Questions answered...
- How easy is it to obtain a "bug"?
- What kinds of listening devices are available?
- What is the typical transmitting range?
- What's the penalty for illegal audio surveillance?
- How do you detect a bug?]]> Sat, 11 Nov 2006 07:57:17 -0500 http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193502101 Thu, 09 Nov 2006 15:47:13 -0500 http://www.spybusters.com/Infrared.html Thermal Emissions Spectrum Analysis™ (TESA) instrumentation.

---

"Kevin, can you recommend an affordable thermal imager?"

I'll do my best, but first, here is what you really want to know...
"How do I choose a thermal imager which will clearly see the very small heat differentials created by electronic eavesdropping devices?"

There are many grades of imagers out there.
In all cases...
- Clearly means High Resolution which = a 640 x 480 pixel (or 512 pixel) detector.
- See means Sensitivity which = an NETD (noise equivalent temperature difference) of <40mK (preferably <18mK).

One other important consideration...
"What portion of the IR spectrum is best for TSCM work?"
Answer: Mid-IR

Although imagers with alternate specifications may see "hot" items like some video cameras, they will not see all the other items you want to find.

High Resolution + Sensitivity = higher Price.

A TSCM-capable imager costs about $40-60k.
Cheap ones cost about $8-10k.
There is not much to choose from in-between other than the 160 x 120, 80mK units in the $20k range.

The major US manufacturer to check is Flir.
Other manufacturers.

Good first investments (books)...
Alien Vision: Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum with Imaging Technology
Infrared Detectors and Systems (Wiley Series in Pure and Applied Optics)

Final Thoughts
Employ technology which really works.
Save until you can afford it, or lease it.
But, don't buy an inadequate imager just so you can say you have one.
That's dishonest.

~Kevin]]> Thu, 09 Nov 2006 11:23:57 -0500 http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2640333&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312 "If I go down in espionage history, it may well be for perfecting the use of sex in spying," Markus Wolf, the East German spymaster who planted some 4,000 agents in the West -- including a top aide to West German Chancellor Willy Brandt -- and sent seductive "Romeo" agents to steal secrets from lonely government secretaries, wrote in his memoirs. Mr. Wolf died early this morning in his Berlin apartment at the age of 83, the Associated Press reports. ]]> Thu, 09 Nov 2006 09:29:37 -0500 http://www.spymuseumstore.org/catalog.html ]]> Wed, 08 Nov 2006 13:50:47 -0500 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116200169155406795-search.html?KEYWORDS=Fiddler&COLLECTION=wsjie/6month
Mr. Fiddler wasn't locked out and he isn't a thief. Instead, the 36-year-old father of four, clad in khakis and a blue button-down shirt, was seated around a table with a handful of people who pick locks for fun. The group, a chapter of Locksport International, gets together monthly to poke and prod everything from padlocks to dead-bolt cylinders. They swap tips, hold contests and eat pizza.

Most say they do it for the challenge. ... Organized groups of lock-picking hobbyists have operated in Europe for years, and have recently been increasing in North America. Locksport International started last year and has 100 members in six chapters in the U.S. and Canada. The Netherlands-based Open Organisation of Lockpickers (TOOOL) formally launched a U.S. group in August and so far has 40 members. The hobby is also becoming popular on college campuses: students at the University of Texas, Austin, recently launched a picking group.

Police and lock manufacturers say they get worried when pickers swap tips on the message boards of lockpicking101.com, a Web site for lock-picking enthusiasts, and post how-to demonstration videos on the popular video-sharing site YouTube.com.]]> Wed, 08 Nov 2006 12:43:43 -0500 http://www.chinavasion.com/product_info.php/pName/auto-detective-pen?osCsid=8da8f703ef3f89ec425acd05756b9cce/// If your spy pen blinks for more than 5 seconds - and you are not using your cell phone - you might be carrying a bugged cell phone!]]> Wed, 08 Nov 2006 09:19:38 -0500 http://english.sabah.com.tr/D4FF7F925C1F4A3E869AA42A1D593B3E.html Wed, 08 Nov 2006 09:06:03 -0500 http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=96bd314e-1265-4000-8eaa-697ba9eac6e6&k=8802 an RCMP wiretap recorded an innocent phone call between Premier Gordon Campbell and his then-finance minister in 2003, slightly before police raided the legislature in late December. ...

The court heard police obtained a wiretap for a government cellular phone without telling the authorizing judge it was a government phone.

]]> Mon, 06 Nov 2006 09:48:18 -0500 http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/15932167.htm eavesdropping and property damage, after being accused of spying on a female neighbor in an apartment building at 11914 Birch St. Police said Ramer was arrested after the woman complained to apartment management that her heating vent was not working.

Police determined that a neighbor had been climbing through the heat duct for about a month to watch the woman. ]]> Sun, 05 Nov 2006 21:07:06 -0500 http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?NEWSID=%7B11E6E1B9-6081-4C9F-B7D9-BF49516B6054%7D&CATEGORYNAME=SPO accused the media of "eavesdropping" in the instance of coach Greg Chappell giving a dressing down to the players during a practice session, and said a "private conversation" was taken out of context and blown out of proportion. ...

He said it was "unfortunate" that the conversation had been heard and more regrettable was that it was taken out of context.

Indirectly referring to the cut-throat competition among the media these days, he said, "These are times when even private conversations are heard and people think they can eavesdrop and then blow it out of proportion." ]]> Sat, 28 Oct 2006 14:50:53 -0400 http://www.myeyewitnessnews.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=AAD2AF5D-204F-4B0C-9426-BEB6651BD5EB bugging devices were found in the ceiling of the office.

At this point county leaders won't say why the employee was suspended, but we do know there are a lot of questions surrounding who planted the bugs, how the bugs were discovered.

At first, Shelby County said the bugs were found during an FBI sweep. Late today, the story changed and the FBI wasn't involved. Its just the latest twist into the homeland security scandal.

In August, John Todd lost his job as the Homeland Security Director. Earlier this month Todd blew the whistle. Eyewitness news was the first station to tell you about Todds accusations of wasted homeland security money.

Weeks later, on October 17th, four bugs were found in the ceiling of the homeland security office.

(Just coincidence? Extortionography strikes again. One good reason why quarterly inspections are part of a complete corporate security program.)]]> Sat, 28 Oct 2006 04:36:03 -0400 http://www.forbes.com/home/corporategovernance/2006/10/25/leadership-hewlett-packard-spying-lead-manage-cx_hc_1025fiveways.html?partner=moreover?partner=moreover Forbes magazine. It is even more unusual to see a Forbes article containing inaccurate and sophomoric advice. Some balance is needed. Specifics relevant to my craft are the only points addressed here.

First, take a break, read the "How To (Legally) Spy On Employees" and its sidebar "Are You Being Watched?" (Still not sure why these two go together.) Then, come back.

None of five suggestions alluded to in the headline even remotely smells like spying. Yes, the list may be good common sense, but it is not the foundation for an effective corporate information security program.

See what you think...
"Try Google first."
"Be honest."
"Create a policy--and make it public."
"Be nice to journalists."
"Brush up on all those pesky legal issues."

On to the pontifications with high cringe factor...

- "Hewlett-Packard has given spying a bad name." (So, when has spying ever had a good name?)

- "Without permission, there are only two ways to get phone records legally: Obtaining a warrant or digging through the trash." (Bad advice. Law enforcement obtains Warrants, not private individuals. Digging through a person's trash for their home phone records is indeed illegal under some state laws, and if you have to trespass to get to the trash.)

- "An acoustic noise generator will mask your conversation in case there's a bug in the room." (Wrong. Acoustic noise generators mitigate sound migration to other areas. If you can hear the other person in your meeting talking to you, so can a bug. A properly placed noise generator simply reduces the chance that a person on the other side of the wall will hear both of you.)

- "Get A Scrambler... it should keep anyone from listening to your call." (No, not 'anyone', just wiretappers. You still need to be concerned with eavesdroppers, room bugs, voice recorders, etc. in areas at both ends of the call. There is a whole lot more you need to know about this subject. Click here and here.)

And, finally...
- "Track Down Bugs - Bug detectors and phone tap detectors can tell you whether anyone is trying to listen in." (Eavesdroppers pray you will buy these gadgets and preform do-it-yourself brain surgery. Please, just call me. We really are your cheapest insurance against electronic surveillance.) ~Kevin]]> Fri, 27 Oct 2006 11:03:47 -0400 http://www.expresscomputeronline.com/20061030/technology01.shtml loss of confidential information due to someone eavesdropping on the conversation or not speaking to the person you think you’re speaking. “The other threat is someone hacking into the phone system and making calls in your name, essentially hijacking the phone lines and DoS attacks where the phone system becomes unavailable because someone is overloading it with data traffic,” he adds.

Eavesdropping through interception and duplication is another significant threat. In eavesdropping, access can be gained through any access point to a voice network (particularly if there are wireless access points on the same network that supports the VoIP service). Once access has been gained, network sniffers can be used to intercept IP traffic.

Best practices
- Separate voice and data into virtual LANs (VLANs)
- Use intelligent firewalls that understand voice
- Use IP Telephony Authentication and Encryption
- Change the default setting in Skype so that it doesn’t allow phone calls from anyone that’s not on your contact list
- Enforce an effective password policy
- Turn off and remove services that are not needed
- Always keep patch levels up-to-date
]]> Fri, 27 Oct 2006 09:34:29 -0400 http://www.wibw.com/home/headlines/4491081.html one misdemeanor count of illegal eavesdropping.]]> Fri, 27 Oct 2006 09:17:53 -0400 http://www.spybusters.com Murray Associates
Eavesdropping Audits with Counterespionage Consulting
======================================================
Important News...
======================================================

Spybusters, LLC dba Murray Associates is our new official name.
*** Please adjust any records you may have for us. ***

Everything else remains the same...
Murray Associates
P.O. Box 668
Oldwick, NJ 08858-0668 (USA)
+1-908-832-7900
http://www.spybusters.com
Thank you!

======================================================
Points of Interest...
======================================================

Our Transition to Government / Military Level TSCM - FutureWatch™
As prices fall and "Q / 007" type surveillance devices become
Internet-easy to obtain, we're ramping up... big time.
The goal... 100% government-level detection capabilities.
Sneak preview - Our 2006-2007 R&D efforts and instrumentation...


SpyCams - A brief history of covert video cameras,
and our 20-year cat-and-mouse detection quest...


Security Colleagues - Make us Your TSCM Team
Provide your business clients with a real counter-eavesdropping solution.

Thank you for your time!
Kevin
]]> Thu, 26 Oct 2006 11:47:34 -0400 http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061026/NEWS/61025005/-1/NEWS illegally eavesdrop on his phone conversations and fabricate evidence against him. The lawsuit was filed yesterday in federal court for the Southern District of New York by Trooper Todd Bohmer of Troop K, based in Poughkeepsie.

Bohmer is suing for $2 million in damages and $4 million in punitive damages.]]> Thu, 26 Oct 2006 11:35:23 -0400 http://ansa.it/main/notizie/awnplus/english/news/2006-10-26_1264868.html A fresh spy furore erupted in Italy on Thursday involving Premier Romano Prodi and his family. ...

Last month, Italy was rocked by a massive wiretap scandal involving telecommunications giant Telecom and its parent company, the tyre group Pirelli.

A bugging ring was uncovered which had gathered illicit data on politicians, businessmen and media figures as well as ordinary Italians but it is not yet known for what ends and for whom.]]> Thu, 26 Oct 2006 09:40:47 -0400 http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/25/america/NA_GEN_US_Hollywood_Wiretaps_Interview.php Hollywood wiretap case because he didn't want to break the trust of celebrities, lawyers and other former clients.

The private eye has pleaded not guilty to racketeering and wiretapping charges and is scheduled for trial next year. ...

Federal prosecutors said months ago that at least one more indictment was coming. But no new defendants have been named since "Die Hard" director John McTiernan was charged in early April.

Authorities also are struggling to decrypt hundreds of recorded telephone calls recovered during FBI searches of Pellicano's offices.]]> Thu, 26 Oct 2006 09:26:48 -0400 http://www.makfax.com.mk/look/novina/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=2&NrArticle=41040&NrIssue=175&NrSection=10 all major political parties, which means a total of four, have wiretapping devices. Tito Petkovski, the leader of the ruling coalition ally New Social Democratic Party, said this on Tuesday at a parliamentary commission's session, whose agenda included reviewing of the draft-law on monitoring of electronic communication. ...

n February 2001, just before the outbreak of the Conflict in Macedonia, the leader of SDSM at the time, Branko Crvenkovski, made public shorthand records on thousands of tapped conversation, accusing the then ruling coalition allies VMRO DPMNE and DPA of having conducted the wiretapping operations.

All victims, mostly public officials, have confirmed the authenticity of the records, including 17 journalists, who filed lawsuits against the state.

The legal proceedings produced no result whatsoever even five years after the outset.]]> Wed, 25 Oct 2006 08:48:22 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116161917790800937.html steal trade secrets from the beverage maker and trying to sell them to archrival PepsiCo Inc. each pleaded guilty Monday to one count of conspiracy.]]> Tue, 24 Oct 2006 12:30:09 -0400 http://search.ottaway.com/search?q=cache:ExotYkOQ-xwJ:www.pressrepublican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061023/NEWS/610240302+eavesdropping&access=p&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&client=default_frontend&site=ppr-archive&proxystylesheet=ppr&oe=ISO-8859-1 electronic eavesdropping.

Michael Alteri, 33, Ticonderoga was indicted by an Essex County grand jury on a felony eavesdropping charge.

Ticonderoga Town Police executed a search warrant at his home recently and found a selection of videotapes from a hidden video camera he allegedly installed at the residence of Jessica Alteri, his ex-wife, in January 2002. She is employed as a deputy sheriff by the Essex County Sheriff's Department.

(candidate for the 2006 Dumb and Dumber Award) ]]> Mon, 23 Oct 2006 21:00:51 -0400 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/10/22/INGA9LRT8Q1.DTL leaked an internal memo that was key to the piece.

...Investigators sifted through three months of phone calls made to and from the press room -- 52 pages of phone bills in total -- before focusing on calls made during a 10-hour period on Dec. 12, 2002. They say they listened to no phone conversations and the practice hasn't been repeated.

While the leaker was never found and the case is now closed...

From the spying scandal at Hewlett-Packard to the imposition of federal prison sentences last month on Chronicle reporters Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada for refusing to disclose their sources for grand jury transcripts, and the search for who leaked information that identified CIA operative Valerie Wilson, the hunt for leakers continues to encroach on ground the press has long considered sacred.

(Methods used to gain inside information may include illegal electronic eavesdropping. Methods used to investigate leak suspects may include illegal electronic eavesdropping. No mater which side of the fence you are on, you will want to use our services.)]]> Mon, 23 Oct 2006 09:24:52 -0400 http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06294/731852-57.stm he installed a camera to peep at girls and women using a toilet at Center Area Middle School.

Phillip D. Winkle, 32, of Aliquippa, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography on June 19. At the time, he agreed to serve the maximum 10-year prison term.

According to the prosecution, Mr. Winkle drilled a hole in the wall that separated the girls' lower-level bathroom from a storage room. He then set up a peephole camera that looked into one stall.

(stop snickering)]]> Sun, 22 Oct 2006 18:09:56 -0400 http://www.cio-today.com/news/Spy-Software-Used-in-Call-Centers/story.xhtml?story_id=103005HOF55M originally developed for eavesdropping, have been employed by customer service agents to get a better idea of customers' moods. Donna Fluss, principal with DMG Consulting LLC in West Orange, N.J., said emotion detection, which tracks volume and pitch, grew out of voice verification technology.

Forrester Research of Cambridge, Mass., said sales of "emotion detection" technology to corporate call centers has reached $400 million annually. Forrester said sales are still growing for the systems and a related technology known as "speech analytics,"...

(Sortalike a large hate thermometer.) ]]> Sun, 22 Oct 2006 09:35:12 -0400 http://www.roboken.channel.or.jp/nettansor/ Robots Gone Wild - Your own WiFi Snooping Alter Ego Creepy Peepy

via Akihabara... "Bandai will offer in Japan around mid-December a new robot entirely controlled remotely thru its Wi-Fi connection. It has a webcam to allow you to see where it goes, a battery life of 2.5 hours, and weights 980g total. It also has 3 sensors (Sensor Monitor) to avoid bumping into things. You will be able to communicate with the robot via email. I can’t wait for a waterproof version to send the robot into the girls’ showers at the University..!"]]> Sat, 21 Oct 2006 09:30:34 -0400 http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Florida_activist_candidate_charged_with_felony_1017.html felony wiretapping charges against election reform activist Charles Grapski for audiotaping his efforts to obtain public records related to his investigation of alleged election fraud...

"This is such a severe case of silencing and a violation of the First Amendment," said Carol Thomas, co-coordinator of Grapski's defense committee, along with Scott Doran.

Grapski audiotaped City Manager Clovis Watson, who commented on the fact that he was being taped, consented, and kept talking, Thomas noted. Subsequently Watson, who also serves as Police Commissioner (an apparent violation of Florida law that prohibits officials from holding more than one public office at a time), ordered Grapski arrested.

"He didn't do anything a newspaper reporter doesn't do every day. It's absurd," Thomas said. "While he was being arrested, the editor of a newspaper was in there audiotaping this."]]> Wed, 18 Oct 2006 10:59:26 -0400 http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/225/225577_2m_for_undercover_cop_bungle.html An undercover policeman who suffered a stroke caused by the stress of a botched "bugging" operation has won a £2m payout.

The Greater Manchester detective was left physically and mentally drained after he tried to attach a tracking device to a car belonging to a violent gang of robbers drinking in a nearby pub.

He had to return to the car on NINE occasions and reattach the device because the batteries which powered it kept failing.

Two days later, he suffered a stroke and he continues to suffer psychiatric problems.]]> Tue, 17 Oct 2006 16:58:00 -0400 http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/775840.html The director general of the President's Residence, Moshe Goral, was involved in eavesdropping activities, say the police investigators who have been looking into the suspicions against President Moshe Katsav.

According to testimony gathered, Goral played a central role in setting up the mechanism used for eavesdropping when Kastsav moved into the residence.

Much of the information received by police came from a former security officer who left the President's Residence several months ago. From the testimony supplied by the former security officer, it is not clear whether Katsav actually used the listening device to listen in on the workers, but it is clear that it was attached to his telephone and that it was put in place during his term in office. ]]> Tue, 17 Oct 2006 16:51:57 -0400 http://www.freedomfchs.com/ Citizens of the World Standing Together to End Organized Stalking, Lethal Bullying & Remote Electronic Torture

Saturday, October 21st, 2006 is an international day of awareness and remembrance for victims of electronic harassment and cause-stalking. At 11 a.m. EST/8 a.m. PST there will be an international conference call that will include victims from all over the world, including Dr Nick Begich, biophysicist Robert Duncan PhD and noted author Gloria Naylor (“The Women of Brewster Place” and “1996”).]]> Tue, 17 Oct 2006 09:57:55 -0400 http://tinyurl.com/y2ubjy Participate Now & Receive Your FREE*
OrbitorTM Electronic Listening Device

*This promotion is conducted exclusively by Computer-Offer and is subject to participation terms and conditions. Receipt of your item requires compliance with offer terms, including: age and residency requirements; registration with valid email address, shipping address and contact phone number; completion of user survey and sponsor promotions. Upon valid completion of all Program Requirements. We will ship your item to your provided shipping address. Unless otherwise indicated, participation eligibility is restricted to US residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited.]]> Tue, 17 Oct 2006 09:34:18 -0400 http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=nation_world&id=4662890 illegal wiretapping. ]]> Mon, 16 Oct 2006 10:55:38 -0400 http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003303848_ptspyware14.html Sun, 15 Oct 2006 17:57:29 -0400 http://www.mmail.com.my/Current_News/mm/Weekend/Frontpage/20061014101438/Article/index_html
She tells you she has found the perfect guy who is reputedly of flawless character, hails from a respectable family, well-educated, has a good job and a healthy bank balance.

A meeting is arranged with the young man, and he turns out to be just as she had described. Humble, respectful and charming to boot — he appears to be the perfect son-in-law candidate. So what’s your next step?

Why, hire a private investigator to check up on him, of course!

This is the latest trend to emerge among protective parents who fear that their prospective sons-in-law might actually be ‘faking his resume’.]]> Sun, 15 Oct 2006 17:54:18 -0400 http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1160730323642 Nanny cams and spyware heat up divorce proceedings

While marital spying could land a spouse in hot water, it's also putting attorneys in some sticky situations.

Divorce lawyers say they are treading very carefully as to how they handle feuding spouses who spy on each other, noting that a growing number of clients are using controversial -- and sometimes illegal -- methods.

Given the technological boom, they note, husbands and wives have taken spying to a new level, using gadgets like nanny cams and spyware. ...

Divorce attorney Karin Duchin Haber, of Haber & Silver in Florham Park, N.J., who represented the husband, would not comment on the case. She did, however, note that she's "definitely" seen an increase in marital spying in recent years.

A few years ago, Haber represented a man whose wife -- suspecting an affair -- bought him a $400 alarm clock as a gift with a hidden camera inside. The husband discovered the camera during divorce proceedings and successfully sued his wife on domestic violence charges.]]> Sun, 15 Oct 2006 17:50:42 -0400 http://100777.com/node/1120 A hypothesis that Microsoft's Windows XP is a complex variation of a bugging device.

M$ Windows XP Professional Bugging Device?
By Mark McCarron

If you have ever wondered, if;
1. Microsoft, was secretly spying on end-user machines?
2. Big Brother deployment scenarios were real?
3. M$ Windows was a type of bugging device?
Then this, is for you my friend, the 'Top-47 Windows bugging functions', and then some. There is also an appendix on forensic methodology and Magnetic Force Microscopy (MFM).]]> Sat, 14 Oct 2006 18:02:01 -0400 http://www.enn.ie/news.html?code=9826696 The humble mobile phone has stepped into the murky world of corporate espionage and phone tapping.

Tales of eavesdropping and voicemail manipulation have been hitting the headlines recently, and mobile phone users -- particularly those in business -- must begin to wonder just how secure is their mobile phone?

One chief executive of a leading Irish and international blue chip company who didn't wish to be named told ENN "I just assume my mobile is monitored... whether my calls are being listened to at any given time or not I just don't know. But you have to assume they are, and so do many others I know."]]> Sat, 14 Oct 2006 17:57:08 -0400 http://www.statesman.com/search/content/news/stories/local/10/13/13myers.html wiretapping case are scheduled for today. Charles Myers, 55, faces up to life in prison for sneaking under his latest ex-girlfriend's house last year and planting a device to record her phone conversations.]]> Fri, 13 Oct 2006 16:52:24 -0400 http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsID=7066&pagtype=all SonntagsZeitung , reports that the Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (UVEK) hired ERA IT Solutions some time ago to come up with a program capable of infecting PCs and tapping conversations without the need to crack VoIP PC-to-PC encryption.

The program - which would have to find its way onto a target computer using some form of Trojan-like deception - would be able to record and save conversations, sending them to a remote server hidden inside normal network traffic.

If the PC was turned off before transmission had been completed, the program is would resend missing parts after the machine was next powered up.

(Leave it to them not to miss a tick.)]]> Fri, 13 Oct 2006 16:39:17 -0400 http://www.spybusters.com Covert Internet MiniCams

Available.
Inexpensive.
Viewable anywhere, by anyone with an Internet connection.
Transmission via Cat 5 telephone cable.
"Looks like just another phone line to me, Clem."
Know how to find them? Call us, we'll do it for you.

One example...
]]> Fri, 13 Oct 2006 16:03:38 -0400 http://www.mlive.com/news/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/news-39/1160747970299440.xml&coll=5
But Paul L. Gagnon will soon be called an inmate after pleading guilty Thursday to an eavesdropping charge for spying on a male roommate and the roommate's girlfriend.

Gagnon, 51, of Flint, a former self-described youth pastor, also pleaded guilty to eight additional charges for using his computer to possess and manufacture child pornography pictures.

"It was in everyone's best interest that this matter was resolved," said attorney Erwin F. Meiers III, who represents Gagnon. "There was a possibility other things could surface that would have led to him being charged with life offenses."]]> Fri, 13 Oct 2006 11:45:24 -0400 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2095-2393365,00.html
He left behind his other big treasure: a vast apartment in Frankfurt with views over the river.

In the meantime, another banker from a rival firm has moved in to house-sit — and discovered some peculiar additional fixtures. A complex system of listening devices is hidden in the ceilings and walls — even in the bathrooms.

The discovery has surprised Seifert as much as the banker. Now I’m told an investigation is under way to find out who put them there, what they heard — and whether they may have profited. A former colleague said: “Seifert often did business from his flat, so it would be an obvious target.” ]]> Mon, 09 Oct 2006 12:45:43 -0400 http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2006/09/28/voice-silencer-on-telephone-lets-you-talk-in-secret/ midget “telephone booth” telescopes to fit the standard cradle phone.]]> Mon, 09 Oct 2006 07:54:04 -0400 http://politicalhumor.about.com/b/a/256805.htm Telcos To Market Private Conversations As Reality Radio
San Antonio, Texas - A consortium of telecommunications companies led by AT&T, Verizon, and BellSouth today announced that they were combining resources to produce a new nationwide reality radio program based on the unauthorized private telephone conversations of their customers. Representatives of the consortium pointed out that this information had originally been gathered to assist the Bush administration and the NSA in its covert project to spy on ordinary Americans and that the companies involved felt that it presented a spectacular business opportunity that opened up a completely new revenue stream.

Acknowledging that this type of information had previously been considered private and off-limits, Bill M. Moore, a spokesperson for the consortium said "Hey, that's before we got the green light from Bush, Cheney and Gonzales. Anyway, this stuff is too good not to use. I mean, we're talking family arguments, gossip, backstabbing, phone sex, medical information. The deepest darkest secrets people confide to their closest friends and family. Hell, it's pure gold. How could we not use it?" Laughing, he continued "besides, what are our customers going to do, sue us?"

The name of the new reality radio program is "Privacy, Smivacy! We Know Your Secrets and Now Everybody Else Does Too."

---

"I signed up for a new calling plan today -- the 'NSA Friends and Family' plan. For $100 a month, they listen to all my friends and all my family." --Jay Leno

"If the government has been monitoring my phone conversations, by God, they should be paying half of my phone sex bill." --David Letterman

"Bush's approval rating has fallen into the 20s -- 29 percent in the latest poll. I tell you. It's hard out there for a chimp. ... He says he doesn't pay attention to the polls. If he wants to know what the American people are thinking, he'll listen to your calls." --Bill Maher

"I got a call last night during dinner from Verizon asking me if I was happy with my long distance surveillance." --Bill Maher

"In the wake of news that the NSA is monitoring American phone records, Sen. Arlen Specter, the judiciary committee chairman, said he would subpoena the phone companies to appear before his committee. The phone companies said they would try to be there sometime between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m." --Tina Fey

"Instead of the NSA recording conversations, this time they just gathered information about the calls: the time, the length and the phone numbers. In other words, while the government does know you called The Gay Teen Bondage Chatline at 1:45 a.m. for 7 minutes at a time, what you discussed... that's your business." --Jon Stewart

]]> Sun, 08 Oct 2006 10:26:02 -0400 http://www.enn.ie/news.html?code=9826696 The humble mobile phone has stepped into the murky world of corporate espionage and phone tapping

Tales of eavesdropping and voicemail manipulation have been hitting the headlines recently, and mobile phone users -- particularly those in business -- must begin to wonder just how secure is their mobile phone?

One chief executive of a leading Irish and international blue chip company who didn't wish to be named told ENN "I just assume my mobile is monitored... whether my calls are being listened to at any given time or not I just don't know. But you have to assume they are, and so do many others I know."

The concern is that although calls are rarely tapped; the register of recent numbers dialled and calls received may be.

JFK's remark: "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you" may be the expression that jumps to mind -- albeit somewhat sarcastically perhaps -- but there is a perception out there that mobile phone fiddling is going on in the cutthroat corporate sphere.]]> Fri, 06 Oct 2006 10:16:45 -0400 http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=594&art_id=vn20061006032211962C256680 South Africa - The microphone is no bigger than the head of a match; the high-definition camera is smaller than a R2 coin.

No, these are not gadgets you would find in a James Bond movie, but real hi-tech devices that spies are using to bug the boardrooms of major corporations.

GriffithsReid, a security consultancy firm, said on Thursday that incidents of corporate espionage had risen dramatically in South Africa as companies, wanting to get an edge on their competitors, increasingly turned to private investigators to spy on them.]]> Fri, 06 Oct 2006 10:01:28 -0400 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/05/bugging_not_a_crime_in_uk/ Bugging offices in the UK is not a criminal offence, according to surveillance and legal experts speaking to OUT-LAW radio. While recording a phone conversation is a criminal offence, someone could place a recording device in an office legally, they said.

In an investigation into corporate surveillance techniques, the weekly technology law podcast OUT-LAW discovered that no offence is committed by placing a bug in a workplace to secretly record conversations.

"There's nothing in any piece of legislation that stops you from putting a physical bug in a room, an office or something like that provided you are there lawfully and you haven't committed any criminal offence to get access to it," said Victoria Southern, a lawyer at Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind OUT-LAW.

"There is no UK law that says thou shalt not bug by means of transmission device," said Justin King of counter-surveillance consultancy C2i. "You wouldn't go down on criminal law, you're not actually committing a criminal offence."

In the wake of the bugging scandal which has engulfed Hewlett Packard, OUT-LAW investigated whether it was possible to conduct legal surveillance in the UK, and what common practices were. It soon emerged that placing a bug is legal.

(To our UK readers... keep our associate's number handy – Whiterock.)]]> Fri, 06 Oct 2006 09:48:09 -0400 http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,20532591-5001021,00.html There's something still bugging paparazzi photographer Jamie Fawcett about his legal battle over allegedly planting a bug outside Nicole Kidman's house more than a year ago _ the police.

Yet another act in the war tale of the movie star and celebrity photographer was played out yesterday when sheriffs knocked on Fawcett's door and summonsed him to appear in court next month.

He was charged for the first time with possessing a listening device outside Nicole Kidman's Darling Point home in January 2005. Not giving up on the high-profile case, police issued the summons after a legal battle to obtain Fawcett's DNA failed.

Police hoped to compare Fawcett's DNA to that found on a listening device found in a garden outside Kidman's home during the star's visit home early last year.

Two sets of DNA were discovered on the device, which a security guard found in a garden but Fawcett appealed against an order to submit a DNA sample in the Supreme Court _ and won.

An apprehended violence order was placed on Fawcett after Kidman claimed the pair went too far in pursuing her for pictures and made her fearful of leaving home.

An out-of-court deal was reached allowing Fawcett to carry out his work, which he did during Kidman's marriage to country music star Keith Urban in June this year.

Fawcett yesterday said he hoped the whole affair would ``die a slow death'' but claimed he was being unfairly targeted by police. ...

He is expected to face Downing Centre Local Court on November 22.]]> Fri, 06 Oct 2006 09:41:11 -0400 http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/editorials/2006/oct/02/566649940.html Hewlett-Packard executive's defense of spying may signal an ugly cultural shift

A former Hewlett-Packard Co. executive told a House committee that her company probably isn't the only one that would use unethical, and potentially illegal, investigative tactics to find the source of a corporate leak.

According to The Washington Post, former HP Chairman Patricia Dunn told a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee last week that she believes that the tactics used "may be quite common" at other companies and that "every company of consequence has people who do detective-type work in order to ferret out sources of nefarious activities."

...Dunn's testimony was largely unapologetic and leaned toward the philosophy that such tactics are the way in which big business is conducted. We can only hope she is wrong and that HP's actions were isolated to what appears to be a group of desperate and ethically bankrupt executives.

(Hoping won't protect you. On the off-chance this insider knows what she is talking about, please keep us in mind.) ]]> Thu, 05 Oct 2006 10:10:09 -0400 http://www.forbes.com/2006/10/04/dunn-hp-felony-tech-cx_ck_1004dunn.html?partner=alerts
Each face four felony charges of using false or fraudulent pretenses to obtain confidential information from a public utility, unauthorized access to computer data, identity theft and conspiracy to commit each of those crimes.

While trying to root out the source of several leaks to the press regarding boardroom matters, Dunn set in motion two investigations that targeted board members, former and current executives and several journalists. The methods used involved impersonations to obtain phone records, surveillance and spyware. ]]> Thu, 05 Oct 2006 09:49:24 -0400 http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,20508089-3102,00.html Australia - A father has turned the tables on a peeping tom harassing his teenage daughter by catching the "pervert" in the act.

Ricky Vivian's 18-year-old daughter, whose name he withheld, had complained of a man loitering around her bedroom window in Marsden, south of Brisbane. So he invested in a $250 night vision camera and had immediate results.

Police have the footage in their possession and have appealed for public help to identify the man.]]> Tue, 03 Oct 2006 20:25:27 -0400 http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/2006/10/01/t8.html
...Under its former name Comverse Infosys, Verint provided legal interception equipment to the FBI. Following the September 11 attacks, Fox News reported that a “backdoor” that provides the company remote access to the system, had been accessed by unauthorised third parties and jeopardised several high-profile investigations, and counter-terrorist monitoring prior to the attack on the World Trade Centre.

The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget. ~ Thomas Szasz

]]> Tue, 03 Oct 2006 09:47:12 -0400 http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060929_557426.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_more+of+today's+top+stories Worried about an invasion of corporate privacy? Consider these ways to protect yourself and your company from prying eyes and ears...

...Among the other countersurveillance products available is a wiretap-detection device that alerts you if a phone is being tapped or if there is any interruption in the phone line. (Now, consider some real protection.)]]> Tue, 03 Oct 2006 09:23:23 -0400 http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hpcosts30sep30,1,5613136.story?coll=la-headlines-business&ctrack=1&cset=true Nobody said corporate snooping came cheap.

According to documents released by Congress, Hewlett-Packard Co. was billed $325,641.65 by the lead investigator trying to track down boardroom leaks in a corporate spying scandal that has engulfed the Palo Alto technology company.
---
They could have purchased an 8-year, proactive, counterespionage program, with quarterly eavesdropping detection inspections from us at this price. Add in the subesequent damage, damage control, legal defense, business disruption, public relations, executive turnover, and stock fluxuation costs... and our proactive counterespionage approach really becomes a no-brainer.]]> Sat, 30 Sep 2006 12:08:14 -0400 http://www.historyhouse.com/in_history/sub_wiretap/ Crazy. Not just crazy, but foolhardy...]]> Sat, 30 Sep 2006 09:03:18 -0400 http://wcbstv.com/topstories/local_story_272195221.html Jeanine Pirro is under investigation for talking about secretly taping her husband, Al.

Turns out, Al has his own history of secretly taping a member of the Pirro family.

It was 1998, and Al and his brother Anthony were under investigation for a million dollars in tax evasion. Al hid a camera in his office to record a meeting with Anthony, who was also his accountant, apparently hoping to prove the tax troubles were due to Anthony's negligence.

The tape, obtained by CBS2, opens with Al addressing the camera directly.

"It's Monday morning, I'm Al Pirro, and I'm about to have a meeting with my brother," Pirro said on the tape.
----
How do we find hidden your hidden cameras? Check here.]]> Sat, 30 Sep 2006 08:56:52 -0400 http://rawstory.com/news/2006/Czech_parliament_asks_premier_to_re_09292006.html a wiretapping scandal. The non-binding resolution condemned Topolanek, Minister of Interior Ivan Langer and Deputy Prime Minister Petr Necas for accusing the former government of secretly bugging the phones of 46 people this year during a politically volatile police probe. ]]> Sat, 30 Sep 2006 08:49:28 -0400 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/29/technology/29leak.html?_r=1&th=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&emc=th&adxnnlx=1159542334-oLVGcqM217GZ16ivfhoDdw
By the time they had finished their search, the team had solved the mystery of what eventually became the most notorious investigation in Silicon Valley. And the way they did it seemed to resemble a bureaucratic version of a Dan Brown thriller.

But in building a clue-heavy reconstruction — part dossier, part “Da Vinci Code” — the detectives ended up wreaking the havoc that has forced out Hewlett-Packard’s chairwoman, led to the resignation Thursday of its general counsel and spawned a series of criminal investigations that are far from over.

The Hewlett-Packard scandal turned into a spectacle Thursday as a House committee brought all those involved to a packed hearing room on Capitol Hill so that lawmakers could chastise them before the television cameras for the series of subterfuges used in the company operation that spied on its own directors, journalists and others.

(Preventing leaks is more cost-effective than plugging them. Just ask the Pat's.)]]> Fri, 29 Sep 2006 11:10:52 -0400 http://nymag.com/daily/politics/2006/09/a_federal_wiretapping_probe_we_1.html Pirro bugs out amid probe
She tried to catch hubby in tryst on boat, say feds

Playing the role of a woman scorned, Jeanine Pirro (New York State GOP attorney general hopeful) confessed yesterday that she wanted to catch her husband fooling around - so she asked disgraced ex-NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik to plant a bug on the family boat. The plot, which was never carried out, is being probed by federal prosecutors as a possible violation of an eavesdropping statute, federal authorities confirmed yesterday.]]> Fri, 29 Sep 2006 11:04:49 -0400 http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/the-office-espionage-kit-203413.php This do-it-yourself espionage kit can be great for getting your career back on track after that lying HR broad complained about some inappropriate conduct in the break room. All you have to do is use the micro-listening device for eavesdropping, the invisible ink pen and decoder to write hidden messages to yourself, and the two mirrors to peek around corners—and not up dresses! You hear that Maria? Not up dresses! Available now for $12.99. – Jason Chen]]> Fri, 29 Sep 2006 10:47:47 -0400 http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060928/NEWS02/609280356/1018
The maximum federal penalty is five years in prison. Under state law, illegally intercepting someone else's conversations carries a top sentence of 1 1/3 to four years in prison.]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:42:34 -0400 http://www.securitypark.co.uk/article.asp?articleid=25886&CategoryID=1
TSCM was originally utilised by government departments to protect top secret and critical information from foreign spies. However, sweeping has now become a highly sophisticated process and had been adopted by major companies, international organisations, government departments, prominent individuals and VIPs and those with an interest in keeping their intellectual property and private lives secure. TSCM is vital for protection.]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:40:57 -0400 http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/15625104.htm
One day in June, FBI agents swooped into two affluent Silicon Valley homes and arrested two engineers. Lan Lee and Yuefei Ge stand accused of stealing proprietary chip designs and software from their employer, NetLogic Microsystems of Mountain View, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. in San Jose.

Now investigators are asking the Department of Justice to charge Lee, an American citizen, and Ge, a Chinese national, with a more serious crime: economic espionage to benefit China.

The case highlights China's role as the main adversary in a complex game of 21st-century espionage where many agents aren't trained spies in trench coats but businessmen, students and researchers. Silicon Valley, counterintelligence experts say, is ground zero.

"Silicon Valley is a hotbed" of economic espionage, said Don Przybyla, who heads a FBI counterintelligence unit in San Jose. ]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:38:50 -0400 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/28/nyregion/28pirro.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin
At a hastily arranged news conference yesterday, called because of an imminent television report on the inquiry, Ms. Pirro conceded that she had her husband, Albert, followed in the summer of 2005. She said she had discussed bugging the family’s boat with Mr. Kerik, an old friend who was then running his own security business. But Ms. Pirro, who was the district attorney of Westchester County at the time, said she never went through with the plan, and she insisted that she broke no laws.]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:29:55 -0400 http://www.politicalgateway.com/news/read/38668 illegal wiretapping in Milan.

Sources told the ANSA news agency that the probe centers on a private investigation firm accused of allegedly breaking into the computer system of the Milan prosecutor's office.

ANSA said a policeman, a former police officer, a financier and a clerk at the prosecutor's office were arrested on charges of computer hacking.

The arrests came less than a week after 21 people were detained in a separate investigation into illegal wiretapping involving Telecom Italia and its parent company, Pirelli.

The wiretapping ring allegedly gathered information on politicians, businessmen, media figures and regular citizens, although it is not yet known for what ends and for whom, ANSA said. The government Friday ordered the destruction of all information gathered illegally by the ring. (WTF?!?!?!)]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:23:05 -0400 http://www.csoonline.com/read/090106/fea_ip_theft_larger.html Insiders (like the temp who sits at this desk) can use many tools and techniques to pilfer your intellectual property. How many can you find?]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:18:42 -0400 http://www.csoonline.com/read/090106/fea_voip.html "Once telephony goes over IP, it's no longer eavesdropping on voice, it's eavesdropping on data, and that's so much easier," says Bruce Schneier, founder and CTO of Counterpane Internet Security. "It's like the difference between intercepting a handwritten note versus an SMS message. It's the difference between a letter and an e-mail."

If you wanted to eavesdrop on an analog phone call, Graydon of the VoIP Security Alliance likes to note, you could. But you'd have to go to your local box store, pick up a box phone, two crocodile clips, a reflective vest and a helmet. Then learn some simple but arcane ways to tap the line. When you scurry up the pole, try not to look too conspicuous. Fake credentials like logos on the helmet help. If you want to eavesdrop on a VoIP call, though, you won't need to climb a pole. You'll still need some arcane knowledge to locate the data stream, but once you have that, all you need is a packet sniffer and software that converts the data into a WAV audio file (tools like Cain & Abel, a software program that can locate and record VoIP streams, are freely available on the Internet). Think of virtually any threat to data, whether it's malicious, accidental or a nuisance, and it will threaten VoIP in a way that it couldn't have easily threatened POTS. For example...]]> Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:16:19 -0400 http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003154102 "conducted feasibility studies on planting spies in news bureaus of two major publications as part of an investigation of leaks from its board."

It attributed this information to an individual briefed on the company’s review of the operation.

"The studies, referred to in a Feb. 2 draft report for a briefing of senior management, are said to have included the possibility of placing investigators acting as clerical employees or cleaning crews in the San Francisco offices of CNET and The Wall Street Journal," the Times reported..

"It is not clear whether the plan described in the documents, which were read to a reporter, was ever acted upon." ]]> Wed, 20 Sep 2006 09:12:17 -0400 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/18/technology/18hp.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin secret investigation of news leaks at Hewlett-Packard was more elaborate than previously reported, and almost from the start involved the illicit gathering of private phone records and direct surveillance of board members and journalists, according to people briefed on the company’s review of the operation.]]> Mon, 18 Sep 2006 09:44:32 -0400 http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/sport/article-23366849-details/Mourinho's+favourite+restaurant+is+bugged/article.do A hidden listening device has been discovered at José Mourinho's (sports figure) favourite restaurant.

The bug was found in an electrical plug at Portal, the Portuguese restaurant where the Chelsea manager is said to have plotted Ashley Cole's transfer to his club.

Staff at the Clerkenwell restaurant said several Chelsea players had dined at a table next to the bug days before it was found.]]> Thu, 14 Sep 2006 09:45:37 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115806247632360511.html?mod=djemTMB California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, confirming a remark made by Mr. Lockyer in an interview on the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, said state investigators have "sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against individuals inside Hewlett-Packard as well as outside the company." In the interview, Mr. Lockyer said: "People's identities were taken falsely, and it's a crime. People accessed computer records that have personal information. That's a crime." ...

People familiar with the matter said H-P has told them one of the outside investigators it used is Ronald R. DeLia of a small Boston firm called Security Outsourcing Solutions Inc. (See related article.) An H-P spokesman reiterated that the company isn't commenting on who did its investigative work.]]> Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:26:50 -0400 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/09/12/BUGQ6L3JI11.DTL&type=business
But corporate espionage is a fact of life. Some form of snooping is relatively commonplace at all kinds of companies, experts say. And in the electronic age they are becoming even more so.

(Reminder: Leaks are preventable. Bugs and wiretaps can be detected. Espionage can be thwarted before any harm is done. Call us.)]]> Tue, 12 Sep 2006 12:37:34 -0400 http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=34320 an investigation instigated by her which ended up by bugging reporters and HP staff.]]> Tue, 12 Sep 2006 12:02:27 -0400 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/5313772.stm "Bugging the Boardroom" - BBC Radio - Industrial spying is estimated to cost global business more than $200 billion a year, according to US security experts.

Most trade secrets are stolen by people working on the inside, who then sell them on to a rival company or exploit the know-how themselves for personal gain.

A BBC Radio 4 investigation reveals that a new frontier is opening up in the corporate intelligence war, and the spy no longer needs to be on the inside - in fact, they can be thousands of miles away.

Allan Urry investigates the world of industrial espionage - revealing the dirty tricks and tactics used in the battle for commercial advantage. Part One & Part Two

Extra Credit... Industrial Espionage 'real and out there']]> Tue, 12 Sep 2006 10:22:48 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115793558115359023.html?mod=djemTMB ...Expands Arsenal of Monitoring Tactics A June survey of 50 executives by Merrill Lynch found 52% rated leaks of confidential or proprietary information as their No. 1 information-security concern, topping viruses and hackers. ... Sometimes, corporate efforts to prevent leaks can cross legal and ethical lines.

(Put proactive eavesdropping detection inspections in your "Arsenal" and you will need fewer "Monitoring Tactics.")]]> Mon, 11 Sep 2006 08:59:39 -0400 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2350661,00.html an improper bugging operation targeting the private phone calls of black and Asian officers.

A panel of senior judges has been asked to consider allegations that Blair directed a secret squad of Met detectives to run a dirty tricks campaign to undermine ethnic officers.

The complaint has been made by the National Black Police Association (NBPA), which has more than 10,000 members and was created by the Home Office to salvage the police’s reputation among ethnic minorities during the Stephen Lawrence inquiry. ...

The allegations will put further pressure on Blair, who is awaiting the results of a probe into complaints that he misled the public over the controversial shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes.

A senior NBPA source has likened the authorised tapping operation to the covert targeting of the US civil rights movement by FBI boss J Edgar Hoover 40 years ago.

Earlier this year Blair was forced to apologise to Lord Goldsmith, the attorney general, and three officials in charge of the Menezes probe after it emerged he had secretly tape-recorded his private telephone conversations with them.]]> Sun, 10 Sep 2006 09:37:33 -0400 http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/worldbiz/archives/2006/09/07/2003326601 LEAKS AND BUGS: The company said chairwoman Patricia Dunn authorized the monitoring of home phones and cellphones of members of the board of directors

Hewlett-Packard's (HP) chairwoman ordered monitoring of its directors' phones to determine the source of news leaks, prompting a furor in which one director quit and another rebuffed efforts to oust him, the company said on Tuesday.

The dispute is to be laid out in documents that HP was to file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) yesterday.

(So far, this Taipei Times news article is the only one which mentions wiretapping and bugs. Until this can be confirmed, suspect something got lost (or added) in the translation.)]]> Sun, 10 Sep 2006 09:33:06 -0400 http://icnorthwales.icnetwork.co.uk/news/regionalnews/tm_objectid=17708181&method=full&siteid=50142&headline=student-spared-jail-over-shower-spycam-name_page.html secretly filmed women taking baths and showers walked free from court yesterday.

A court heard how Charles Greaves hid a tiny digital video camera inside a bottle of shower gel. The 19-year-old then left the bottle in the bathroom of his mixed-sex halls of residence at Bangor University.]]> Sat, 09 Sep 2006 12:18:29 -0400 http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/content.asp?Bnum=952 ...A device that allows others to hear from outside ordinary locked rooms.

This is a very early reference to the concept of a device or technology that could penetrate a locked room to hear conversations within the room.

Captain Carter added abruptly, "We're insulated here, Halsey?"
"Yes. Talk as freely as you like. An eavesdropping ray will never get through to us."
"...Look here, lads, this is my chance to talk plainly to you. Outside, anywhere outside these walls, an eavesdropping ray may be upon us. You know that? One may never even dare to whisper since that accursed ray was developed."

From Brigands of the Moon, by Ray Cummings.
Published by Astounding in 1931

(2006 - We now have laser beam, microwave and ultra-wideband eavesdropping devices.)]]> Sat, 09 Sep 2006 09:40:35 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115769608768057460-search.html?KEYWORDS=H-P&COLLECTION=wsjie/6month
California Attorney General Bill Lockyer yesterday said his office will probably file criminal charges related to the company's use of private investigators to obtain phone records of board members who might have been leaking to the news media. The company also admitted that the outside leak investigators had obtained personal phone records of nine reporters, including journalists from the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNET News.com, as the San Jose Mercury News reports.

Moral: Prevent outside leaks in the first place.
How?: Institute an Information Security Policy which includes electronic eavesdropping detection.
How?: Call us. We can help with both.]]> Fri, 08 Sep 2006 09:13:23 -0400 http://cryptome.org/hp-spy-sec.htm methods used to conduct HP’s investigations into the leaks, asserted that phone and e-mail communications had been improperly recorded as part of the investigation, and informed HP that he had recently consulted with counsel regarding that assertion. In response to Mr. Perkins’ request, HP informed Mr. Perkins that no recording or eavesdropping had occurred, but that some form of “pretexting” for phone record information, a technique used by investigators to obtain information by disguising their identity, had been used. Mr. Perkins, although no longer a director, then requested that HP conduct an inquiry into the propriety of the techniques used to conduct the investigation.]]> Thu, 07 Sep 2006 12:21:38 -0400 http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/15456114.htm
California's attorney general entered the spying drama surrounding Hewlett-Packard, issuing subpoenas Wednesday to determine whether laws were broken when investigators working with the chairman of the company's board secretly gained access to other board members' phone records.]]> Thu, 07 Sep 2006 11:57:51 -0400 http://hr.blr.com/doc_print.cfm?id=19028 Employers that want to conduct electronic surveillance in the workplace should take steps to ensure that their policy and practices are effective enough to keep up with advances in technology and in compliance with federal and state law, according to two experts who recently led a BLR audio conference.

Diana Gregory, a senior HR specialist with Administaff, was one of two experts who offered best practices on developing and implementing an electronic surveillance policy.]]> Thu, 07 Sep 2006 11:50:08 -0400 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/07/fashion/07spy.html?ex=1158292800&en=f06f24f2bed49ccf&ei=5070&emc=eta1 “It’s so easy and so many people are doing it that a lot of people don’t realize how often they’re being spied on...”

There was a time when unearthing someone’s private thoughts and deeds required sliding a hand beneath a mattress, fishing out a diary and hurriedly skimming its pages. The process was tactile, deliberate and fraught with anxiety: Will I be caught? Is this ethical? What will it do to my relationship with my child or partner?

But digital technology has made uncovering secrets such a painless, antiseptic process that the boundary delineating what is permissible in a relationship appears to be shifting.]]> Thu, 07 Sep 2006 11:06:40 -0400 http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/09/05/pope.spies.reut/index.html Pope John Paul was spied on by Vatican informers working for the Polish secret services in the communist era, a Polish cardinal was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Cardinal Joseph Glemp, archbishop of Warsaw, was quoted as telling Italy's ANSA news agency that John Paul was the target of espionage between his election in 1978 and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

John Paul was "spied on, and how," ANSA quoted Glemp as saying in Assisi, where he was attending a religious conference.

"There were spies in the Vatican. Moscow had great interest in knowing what was going on in Rome with a Polish Pope in office," he was quoted as saying.]]> Wed, 06 Sep 2006 15:05:29 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115749453036454340.html?mod=djemTMB Perkins Slams Briefcase, Says, 'I Quit and I'm Leaving,' As Probe Fingers a Friend

Wall Street Journal - The latest eruption came at a meeting on May 18, when the board reviewed the results of an extensive investigation into press leaks...

Leaks, eavesdropping, wiretapping, spying cause big Boardroom problems, but they can be prevented in the first place. ]]> Wed, 06 Sep 2006 09:17:52 -0400 http://www.ntc.doe.gov/cita/CI_Awareness_Guide/home.htm Eavesdropping and and spying is very real.
(Hey, no need to take our word for it.)
Table of Contents]]> Wed, 06 Sep 2006 09:10:32 -0400 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/5313772.stm Industrial spying is estimated to cost global business more than $200 billion a year, according to US security experts.

Most trade secrets are stolen by people working on the inside, who then sell them on to a rival company or exploit the know-how themselves for personal gain.

(Detecting bugging and other forms of electronic eavesdropping gives you time to prevent your information from being used against you. Call us for assistance.)]]> Tue, 05 Sep 2006 10:50:55 -0400 http://www.lep.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=73&ArticleID=1740560 microchipping of wheelie bins. Human rights group Privacy International is considering reporting local authorities to the Information Commissioner over the use of the secret technology.]]> Mon, 04 Sep 2006 16:58:47 -0400 http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/biz/200608/kt2006082118430711870.htm KTF (a Korean mobile phone carrier), in cooperation with EGTEK, has launched Love Detector, a service that analyzes the voice of the party on the other end of the mobile conversation every 10 seconds.

To initiate the service, one should punch in 42 first, followed by the mobile number of the other party, before pressing the call button. The other party will be unaware his or her conversation is being monitored.

"Through the analysis, users can also predict the degree of affection someone has for the user, as a lie detector, a boredom indicator, a trickery indicator, to determine friendship compatibility, and more."

KTF officials said the basic technologies used in their new services originated from the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad in their counterintelligence operations, and these technologies are applied in a wide range of areas from security and business to medicine.]]> Mon, 04 Sep 2006 10:27:16 -0400 Hot on the heals of Gremany's Bin Bugging scandel comes news out of Ireland...

The Belfast Telegraph (August 29) claims that Belfast City Council is one of a number of local councils which has been "secretly bugging" household bins by implanting computer chips in them.

Much ado-do about nothing...
The chips are only on recycling bins and have one purpose only: to monitor recycling rates in the city - and thus help us meet very exacting targets set by the European Union. ]]> Mon, 04 Sep 2006 09:50:29 -0400 http://www.gozimbabwe.com/internet_060901.html "specialists in the interception of radio and internet communication".]]> Sun, 03 Sep 2006 08:27:34 -0400 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/03/google_eavesdropping_software/ use the existing PC microphone to listen to whatever is heard in the background, be it music, your phone going off or the TV turned down. The PC then identifies it, using fingerprinting, and then shows you relevant content, whether that's adverts or search results, or a chat room on the subject. ...

Also, given that Google provides the software link between its search software and the microphone, it's a small step to making the same link to any webcams attached to the PC.

Pretty soon the security industry is going to find a way to hijack the Google feed and use it for full on espionage.

Google says that its fingerprinting technology makes it impossible for the company (or anyone else) to eavesdrop on other sounds in the room, such as personal conversations, because the conversion to a fingerprint is made on the PC, and a fingerprint can't be reversed, as it's only an identity.]]> Sun, 03 Sep 2006 08:23:19 -0400 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115698239989350052.html?mod=djemTMB New Services Help Safeguard Outbound Messages Against Forwarding and Tampering

People who want to open email from patent attorney Andrew Currier have to know the drill. First, they must answer a predetermined question, such as "Where did we first meet?" If they answer correctly, they will then be allowed to view the contents of the email -- but they can't alter it or forward it to anyone else.

Concerned about privacy, the Toronto-based lawyer has begun using a new service that encrypts his emails and tries to keep unintended recipients from reading the contents. The tool, developed by Echoworx Corp., adds a "send secure" button to his Microsoft Outlook email program. Unlike other email-security systems Mr. Currier has tried, this one doesn't require recipients of his emails to download any software or use the same email program.

In Secure Mail, recipients must answer a predetermined question to open email. "I really need it to be easy for the client on the other end," says Mr. Currier, who says that leaked information could be disastrous for one of their patent applications. "People don't appreciate just how vulnerable email is."

Note: Not Macintosh compatible :<

Another new service, Kablooey Mail, allows consumers to send "self-destructing" emails that can be viewed for only a limited time, which may appeal to people who don't want a record of their correspondence.

Note: Will work on a Macintosh using Firefox, but not Safari. Message can be copied using the screen shot command without triggering 'self-destruct'. :<]]> Thu, 31 Aug 2006 11:05:41 -0400 http://www.freemarketnews.com/WorldNews.asp?nid=19723 Did the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency want to use cats as bugs? According to a posting by Greg Bjerg at the blog Damn Interesting, they did.

He cites recently declassified documents that show the existence of Operation Acoustic Kitty from the Agency's top-secret Science and Technology Directorate, actual living cats were "surgically altered to become sophisticated bugging devices." The intention as stated was to allow the feline snoops to "eavesdrop on Soviet conversations from park benches, windowsills and garbage containers."

The story notes that OAK was begun in 1961, and quotes ex-CIA official Victor Marchetti as saying, "They slit the cat open, put batteries in him, wired him up."

Unfortunately, the article concludes, during the first test of the animal, he was let out of a parked van near a Soviet compound in Washington, whereupon "the cat ambled into the road, and was struck by a taxi almost immediately. Five years of effort and over $15 million in spending were reduced to roadkill in an instant." The program was finally abandoned in 1967, declared "an unadulterated failure." ]]> Thu, 31 Aug 2006 10:30:50 -0400 http://www.lightbluetouchpaper.org/2006/03/09/video-eavesdropping-demo-at-cebit-2006/ It shows how easily now cheap FPGA DSP evaluation boards can be turned into impressive home-brew eavesdropping devices." ~Markus Kuhn]]> Thu, 31 Aug 2006 10:26:54 -0400 http://rawstory.com/news/2006/Zimbabwe_bugging_bill_will_put_ISPs_08312006.html President Robert Mugabe's government wants to bring in new laws that will allow for the tapping of phones, email and internet communications as well as the monitoring of private mail in a bid to protect national interest and security. ]]> Thu, 31 Aug 2006 10:16:27 -0400 http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2006/829/2 see clearly no matter what the light conditions.

The team took its inspiration from the humble housefly.]]> Wed, 30 Aug 2006 16:08:18 -0400 http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2163177/boffins-plug-first-truly world's first truly quantum cryptographic data network.

By integrating quantum noise-protected data encryption (QDE) with quantum key distribution (QKD), researchers from the Northwestern University and BBN Technologies of Cambridge, Massachusetts, have developed a complete data communication system which boasts "extraordinary resilience to eavesdropping".

The QDE method, called AlphaEta, makes use of the inherent and irreducible quantum noise in laser light to enhance the security of the system and make eavesdropping much more difficult.]]> Wed, 30 Aug 2006 14:04:28 -0400 http://www.nbc4.tv/technology/9760198/detail.html The married man's girlfriend sent a text message to his cell phone: His wife was getting suspicious. Perhaps they should cool it for a few days.

Later, the married man bought a new phone. He sold his old one on eBay, at Internet auction, for $290. The guys who bought it now knows his secret.

The married man had followed the directions in his phone's manual to erase all his information, including lurid exchanges with his lover. But it wasn't enough.

Selling your old phone once you upgrade to a fancier model can be like handing over your diaries. All sorts of sensitive information pile up inside our cell phones, and deleting it may be more difficult than you think.]]> Wed, 30 Aug 2006 14:01:39 -0400 http://milwaukee.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/advice_library/home_office/security_products.html Find a qualified security specialist to help you fulfill your protection needs

Electronic debugging, once the exclusive realm of James Bond, is now done regularly.

"Industrial espionage is a particularly hot topic right now," said Kevin D. Murray, an IAPSC member and spokesman for the group. "About half the time when there has been an intrusion, it is a competitor. For the rest, it's done by people within the company, snooping for advantage or involved with internal politics."

Debugging is not an idle practice.

"If a company has business or trade secrets and there is litigation, a court will look to the firm's extended security measures as part of the proof that it is indeed a business secret," Murray said. "Security sweeps done on a regular basis will catch problems before they become problems."]]> Wed, 30 Aug 2006 11:21:48 -0400 http://www.holide.com/products/products_l3.asp?RecID=1665 All the more reason to keep our number handy...]]> Tue, 29 Aug 2006 19:23:23 -0400