"Muwha ha ha, next... killer mosquitoes!"

At some point in the not-too-distant future, a moth may take flight in the hills of northern Pakistan, and flap towards a suspected terrorist training camp.

But this will be no ordinary moth.

Inside it will be a computer chip that was implanted when the creature was still a pupa, in the cocoon, meaning that the moth's entire nervous system can be controlled remotely.

The moth will thus be capable of landing in the camp without arousing suspicion, all the while beaming video and other information back to its masters via what its developers refer to as a "reliable tissue-machine interface."

The creation of insects whose flesh grows around computer parts — known from science fiction as cyborgs — has been described as one of the most ambitious robotics projects ever conceived by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the research and development arm of the U.S. Department of Defense. (more)

When Business Infiltrates Protest Groups

New Zealand - The Alliance says the use of spies and private investigators on political groups by Solid Energy would end under full public and democratic control of electricity and other state owned assets.

The use of young people to infiltrate political groups by private investigators, who are linked to Solid Energy and other corporates, has been revealed by an investigative report in today's Sunday Star Times. (more)

The man who spied for state-owned company Solid Energy has faced up to one of the greenie friends he betrayed.

The 25-year-old Christchurch university student, Ryan Paterson, infiltrated an environmental group, Save Happy Valley, and for months passed information to a private eye about opposition to the company's planned West Coast coal mine.

"I mean I'm on the front page of the paper as a spy who would sell his soul to screw greenies and help big business," he says.

So what causes a man to rat on his friends and comrades? Love? Politics? "Money," he says. All up he received $2,000 to join the Save Happy Valley Coalition.

He says he feels terrible now because he came to believe in the cause. (more)

Lawsuit claims bugs used to listen in on resident’s conversations

SC - Judy Johnson filed suit against Ambling Management Company, the company that oversees Pendleton Garden Apartments, for illegally recording private conversations on the apartment property.

The class action lawsuit challenges the legality of the installation of “listening, eavesdropping and/or bugging devises and/or video surveillance devices in and around the residential apartment complex” and benefits Ms. Johnson and anyone else “similarly situated, “ the lawsuit said.

Charles R. Griffin, attorney for Ms. Johnson, said the bugging was not only a violation of federal laws, but also a violation of Ms. Johnson’s right to privacy.

“She’s kind of upset about it. She contacted the housing authority about it and wasn’t able to get relief,” he said. “She is still living there. She’s very uncomfortable right now.”

According to the lawsuit, Ms. Johnson moved into an apartment at 210 Kirk Lane in Pendleton in March 2006. About a year later, she said she learned that “electronic, mechanical and/or other video and audio listening” equipment had been installed “in and around apartments” to “surreptitiously listen to tenants’, residents’ and guests’” conversations.”

Later, on March 31, 2007, the lawsuit said, an employee of Ambling admitted to the surveillance devices at a Crimestoppers meeting at the apartment complex. (more)

Minor League Eavesdropping

Just seconds into the interview, Shiner catcher Maci Schaefer had to chase away one of her teammates who had cracked open the door to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"Get out!" Schaefer exclaimed. "She's trying to listen to me. Get out!"

It's all part of being the "big sister" on the Lady Comanches' softball team. (more)

Eavesdropping on the Loch Ness Monster

A science enthusiast from Yorkshire is making waves in Scotland after capturing video footage of what he believes could be the Loch Ness Monster.

Gordon Holmes, from Shipley, travelled to the Scottish Highlands to use new hydrophone equipment in an attempt to eavesdrop on Nessie in the water. But after spending a day trying to get a sound recording of the monster, the 55-year-old believes he has gone one step further by capturing the creature on camera.

He said: "I was sat in a lay-by about 70ft above the loch – it was 10pm but the sun was still shining on the mountains on the other side. "I was minutes from going home and I had only..." (more)

The Emperor's New Shades

(from a press release) "CPFilms Inc., a unit of Solutia Inc., announced today that it is introducing LLumar® Signal Defense Security Film, a high-tech clear window film for businesses and high net-worth individuals looking to secure and protect the confidentiality of their wireless and other “free-space” electronic communications. The film is ideally suited for industries where securing confidential information and protecting data is paramount – such as retail, healthcare, and the financial services industry.

Patented technology built into LLumar Signal Defense film reduces electronic signal leakage through windows, a building’s point of least resistance, by serving as a transparent barrier that allows light to pass through, while minimizing transmission of wireless (WiFi), radio frequency (RF), and other electronic signals." (press release)(patent)

Think about it...
Do radio waves only travel through windows?
Does "reduced" signal leakage prevent interception?
"Tested and Proven" ???... Got proof?
What are the attenuation measurements?
Perhaps this would be effective if it were presented as part of a larger architectural shielding effort. In our opinion, the inventors worked hard and developed a clever and potentially useful product. But, to promote this film as a simple paste-on eavesdropping solution is neither credible, nor honest.

Sources: Report details NHLPA spying

The electronic spying program instituted at the NHL Players’ Association targeted 45 players, was referred to as “Big Brother” and extended to ex-union chief Ted Saskin examining how individual players voted in the secret ballot to ratify the NHL labor deal, according to sources familiar with a report on the matter.

Among other details from the report, according to sources: Saskin systematically read the personal e-mails of players and union staff members for more than a year, but stopped briefly because he was concerned about legal implications in the wake of the Hewlett-Packard corporate surveillance scandal. Saskin resumed reading the messages when he learned of an effort by NHL players to authorize an investigation into his hiring and other activities. (more)

Throw a geek into cognitive dissonance...

"Would you rather have an iPhone or a Wristphone?"

SMS - a quad-band cell wristphone.

It includes a 1.5-inch color touch screen display with stylus, Bluetooth 2.0, audio (MP2/AAC) and video (MP4) player, 128MB of storage and about 200 minutes of talk or 80 hours standby before a USB recharge is required (deep breath) Time / Date, Last Number Redial, Recent Calls, Missed Calls, File Manager, 199 Contacts, SMS Messages, Multi Languages, Flight Mode and Email.

The manufacturer says delivery of the SMS M500 Phonewatch is within 45 days of ordering. Cost ≈$822.USD

Hewlett-Packard Spy Story... ain't over yet.

Hewlett-Packard says former VP Karl Kamb betrayed the company. He claims HP got his private phone records and spied on Dell. ...

Once again HP is accused of using shady and aggressive investigative tactics, including a high-pressure interrogation that reduced one of its own executives to tears. There's even an allegation - or more than an allegation, as we'll soon see - of corporate espionage.

How did it unfold? (more)

Roll Top Desks - Still Stopping Snooping

A century ago, one preserved the privacy of their desktop with a roll-top that locked.
Good idea!
What happened?
Why did roll-top desks vanish?
Who knows. Anyway, they are back!

The Secure Cabinet Company offers steel roll-top desks and roll-top desktops. Of course, some of the older roll-tops are available as well.


Here is a 60's number designed by George Nelson.








Or, how about a new sleek custom Walnut roll-top with matching bench by Ruben Guajardo?






Modern versions of the classic style desks are also available.



Need something special?
Contact HSA, "The Rolltop People."

There is just something I like about an original roll-top desk.
It says, in a stern, deep voice, with perfect diction...
"Mind your own business."

iPhoney

Examples of espionage, successful competitive intelligence, cloning, and outright counterfeiting continue to rain down on the cell phone marketplace. (note: the wallpaper, Apple logo on rear, Apple power-up/down screen)

The CECT P168 phone screams Apple iPhone (top right) just like the Meizu MiniOne (shown below). Both of these Chinese products made it to the streets more than a month before the iPhone is due out. (more) (more)

(Kevin's refrain)
"What do you think the chances are that these products were developed totally independently of each other?

Now, what are you doing to protect your work product?"
(one solution)

Fish & Chips with Hellfire

The Hand & Flowers restaurant / pub is located in the beautiful Georgian town of Marlow, UK. There you will find award winning cuisine by Michelin chefs, in warm and welcoming surroundings. Their Fish & Chips dish (awarded Best in the UK - 2005) is delicious and well worth the journey. An Abbot Ale makes the meal complete.

While in the area, visit The Hellfire Caves in West Wycombe. They consist of almost a mile of underground passages with various figures depicting the life and times of the the members of the infamous Hellfire Club.

Pictured is the entrance to the cave.

"Hell-Fire clubs were notorious, thought to be the home of sexual rites, orgies, abuse of alcohol, hedonism, satanism, freemasonry, and the worst of all: free thought! All in all, much of it is probably true, but Satanic goings-on and Black Masses are most likely the product of imaginative fantasy. From todays point of view, where swinger clubs, rave parties and hard rock concerts are rather common, the 18th century bigotry seems rather naive.

Probably to be safe from witnesses or because of the strange atmosphere, Sir Francis Dashwood used the former chalk quarries of West Wycombe for meetings of his club. He enlarged them, which gave work to numerous men and produced enough chalk to build a road. The Monks of Medmenham doubtlessly held wild parties here, but it's doubtful that they ever did any more than that. The caves are cold, dank and damp and not very comfortable for orgies."
(more) (more photos)

The Internet Spyware Prevention Act or I-Spy Law

A new bill to tackle rising menace of spyware was passed by the US House of Representatives. The bill will chalk out severe punishment for anyone caught spreading malicious codes around the Internet.

Punishment ranges from heavy fines to five years of imprisonment. While the bill, known as Internet Spyware Prevention Act, or I-Spy, has been sponsored by both Republicans and Democrats, it does not contain any provision making it mandatory for software makers to warn the user before installing. (more)(follow the bill's progress)

E-spying may be legal, but moral?

Listen to a computer preach to you about the morality of electronic spying. (Ms. Hal)

The Case of the Salacious Solicitor

OH - Jackson Township police arrest a local attorney for allegedly spying on his neighbors with a digital audio recorder.

Police say 31-year-old Aaron Ridenbaugh was caught by neighbors as he tried to place the recorder outside one of their windows at the Fox Haven Apartments in Jackson Township.

When questioned by police, Ridenbaugh initially denied the claims but detectives say he later admitted to setting up the recorders for his own "personal pleasure."

According to Harley Neftzer, Jackson Township Police Chief, Ridenbaugh wrapped a wire around the recorder and placed it on the outside of the window with a thumbtack.

Detectives also searched Ridenbaugh's apartment where they discovered a hole in one of his closets, which they believe he used to spy on his next door neighbors. ...

Detectives believe Ridenbaugh is responsible for at least three other incidents that began back in 2005. (more)

Prince Charming and the Tell-Tale Tape

Once upon a time, in jolly old England...

The Plot
A police worker was fired after an investigation into a video tape allegedly showing Prince Harry on a night out. The woman was arrested after a raid at her home found police surveillance equipment. The swoop followed a tip-off she had a recording of Harry, 22, that had been taken out of a car known to have been driven by Prince William, 24. The civilian engineer, who worked for an elite covert unit, was nicked on suspicion of theft.

The Twist
She said she was using the surveillance equipment to spy on neighbours who she claimed were harassing her. It is believed she was also questioned about the tape. The fate of the recording is unknown (surprise) and its alleged contents cannot be revealed for legal reasons.

The Turn
But The Sun (the local yellow beacon of truth) understands the playboy prince, famous for his high spirits, was recorded in an unguarded moment. The charge against the worker was dropped but she was sacked for “gross misconduct”.

The Ciiffhanger
But she is appealing (note double entendre) and has launched a claim for sexual harassment against six named cops. (source)

How to Kill A Keyless Car Remote

Owners of some new Nissan motor cars are being advised to keep their mobile phones away from the keyless-ignition fobs which are used to start their cars, as the phones can "wipe" the fob memory. The problem is limited to the 2007 Altima and G35, and the problem can be avoided by keeping mobile phones at least an inch away from the fob.

The Tennessean newspaper said that if owners send or receive calls while their phones are touching the fob, there's a chance the fob's electronic code could be erased. Once erased, the fobs cannot be reprogrammed, and owners can restart their engines only by using the spare fobs sold with their cars, a Nissan spokesman told the newspaper.

Nissan expects to be able to issue new fobs within a few months, and is currently replacing damaged fobs free of charge. (more)

"I ain't got to show you any stinkin'..."

Mexico is expanding its ability to tap telephone calls and e-mail using money from the U.S. government, a move that underlines how the country's conservative government is increasingly willing to cooperate with United States on law enforcement.

The expansion comes as President Felipe Calderón is pushing to amend Mexico's constitution to allow officials to tap phones without a judge's approval in some cases.

Mexican authorities for years have been able to wiretap most telephone conversations and tap into e-mail, but the new $3 million Communications Intercept System being installed by Mexico's Federal Investigative Agency would expand its reach.

The system would allow authorities to track cellphone users as they travel and allow authorities to identify callers by voice, according to the contract specifications.

The system, scheduled to begin operation within the next month, was paid for by the U.S. State Department and sold by Verint Systems Inc., a politically connected company based in Melville, N.Y., that specializes in electronic surveillance.

Documents describing the upgrade suggest that the U.S. government could have access to information derived from the surveillance. Officials of both governments declined to comment on that possibility. (more)

SpyCam Story #358

MA - A Plymouth man caught secretly videotaping clients in a massage business he co-owned in Sandwich in 2005 has been sentenced to two to three years in prison.

Patrick Dwyer, 41, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Barnstable Superior Court to 52 counts included in six indictments against him. The former co-owner of The Balanced Body in Merchants Square must now register as a sex offender after admitting that the sexually assaulted at least 15 clients during massage sessions.

Dwyer began serving his sentence — not less than two years and not more than three years — at Cedar Junction in Walpole. ...

Dwyer was also charged with five counts of breaking and entering to commit a felony, 15 counts of photographing unsuspecting nude people, and 14 counts of unlawful wiretapping. ...Dwyer must wear a monitoring device throughout his (10-year) probationary period.

...stemmed from his arrest in October of 2005 after a female tenant living next door to his business caught Dwyer in her apartment. Police found evidence that a video camera had been installed in the vents between the apartments.

...An ongoing investigation by Sandwich police and state forensics specialists turned up more than 30 videotapes, computer disks, and computer equipment in Dwyer’s home and business believed to have been used to tape clients. (more)

Wiretapping is the least of his problems...

WI - The man accused of murdering a truck driver in Portage County will also stand trial in Marathon County for rape, false imprisonment and wiretapping a woman's phone.

Michael Haydon, 40, has been in jail, awaiting trial for allegedly shooting Pat Zemke to death in November 2003 after he mistakenly thought the truck driver was seeing Haydon's girlfriend.

Prosecutors say Haydon raped the woman the night before the murder of Zemke.

In court today, the victim testified when she came home that November night, her dogs were missing and there was a boombox on the table with a note saying "press play."

She said what she heard was a phone conversation between her and a friend.

A closer look at the note made it clear that Haydon had taken her dogs, and he wanted the woman to call him.

Sergeant Mike Lukas of the Portage County Sheriff's Department says Haydon had wiretaps on the victim's line to see if she was involved with another man.

But the taps he had also caught threatening conversations he had with the woman... (more)

Haydon is pleading not guilty. (more)

OK, now the wheels are starting to fall off.

CA - A federal wiretapping trial involving private investigator Anthony Pellicano and five co-defendants was postponed to Feb. 27.

Prosecutors contend in a 111-count criminal indictment handed down in February 2006 that Pellicano illegally wiretapped the phones of Hollywood stars such as Sylvester Stallone and bribed police officers to run the names of more than 60 people, including comedians Garry Shandling and Kevin Nealon, through government databases.

The information gathered was used to get dirt for threats, blackmail and in some cases to secure a tactical advantage in litigation, prosecutors alleged.

Pellicano, 63, has pleaded not guilty and remains in federal prison awaiting trial. (more)

"I'd Like to...

...Buy Sell The World a Coke."

A federal judge ignored a former Coca-Cola secretary's plea for mercy Wednesday and sentenced her to eight years in prison for conspiring to steal trade secrets from the world's largest beverage maker.

U.S. District Judge J. Owen Forrester told Joya Williams, 42, that he was giving her a longer sentence than recommended by federal prosecutors and sentencing guidelines because, "This is the kind of offense that cannot be tolerated in our society."

Williams had faced up to 10 years in prison on the single conspiracy charge in a failed scheme to sell Coke's trade secrets to rival PepsiCo Inc. for at least $1.5 million.

Industrial Espionage or Coincidence?

The Casio 12.1 megapixel camera (EX-Z1200SR) and the Panasonic 12.2 megapixel camera (DMC-FX100).

Great minds thinking alike?

Both are designed alike.
Both feature sets are alike.
Both were announced yesterday - within one hour of each other ...which I like.

One difference.
Casio's lens is not a Leica. (more)

P.S. Sony began shipping their 12.1 megapixel camera (DSC-W200) five days ago.
Look familiar...
What do you think the chances are that these three products were developed totally independently of each other?

Now, what are you doing to protect your work product?
(one solution)

"Funny, it doesn't look like a 1984 model Toyota."

(from gizmodo.com)
When the AVL-900 is properly installed in a car, it contains enough gadgetry to successfully ruin every high-school student's Friday night.

Not only does it send out the GPS coordinates of the car's current location or alert the owner/parent the second their car has been moved, but it can spy on the driver as well. That's right, with a simple text message you can instantly gain access to all of the conversations going on inside the car. So even though little Jimmy said on the phone that he was going to the library, once dialed in you can hear all about how he and his friends are on their way to the deadly drug party with all the strippers and illegal activities.

Luckily for the young'uns they still have some time, since there's no word yet on where to pick up one of these snitches. But if the moms I knew growing up are any indication, they will find it—and they will use it.– Ben Longo (original)

The 'young'uns' lucky few minutes are over... (more) ...not to mention the spouse'uns.

SpyCam Story #357 (update)

OH - A 24-year-old man says he installed a smoke detector with hidden cameras in his home to deter his wife from having an affair.

But Steven Dittmer used the wireless camera last November to spy on a teenage female relative and her girlfriend in his shower, Lorain County prosecutors say.

A grand jury indicted Dittmer last week on 11 charges, including illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material and contributing to the delinquency of a minor for supplying beer to one of the girls in 2005 and 2006, court records said.

SpyCam Story #356

A Canadian man charged with sexual assault is now facing child pornography charges after a search of his home turned up a teddy bear outfitted with a remote-controlled video camera, police said on Thursday.

Police in Durham Region, east of Toronto, said the teddy bear had been fitted with the camera in its eyes and could be operated from some distance away. It was discovered this week inside a 24-year-old man's home during an investigation into the sexual assault of two girls under 12.

Police said they also discovered a watch-like wristband device capable of recording images, as well as tapes showing sexual assaults on young victims.

Computer equipment was also seized from the home of the man who was said to be active with the Salvation Army Church in Bowmanville, about 70 km (44 miles) from Toronto. (more)

SpyCam Story #355

IL - A McLean County jury convicted a Bloomington man of one count of criminal sexual assault and acquitted him of three other counts in the case involving an incident at his home in 2004.

Jeff Young, 44, of Gerard Drive also was convicted of eavesdropping for videotaping the sexual activity.

The video was found during a police search of Young’s home in 2005 in connection with a similar case involving a different woman. The charges in this case were filed after police found the video and showed it to the woman. ...

Young faces up to 21 years in prison when he is sentenced July 20. (more)

SpyCam Story #354

NC - A U.S. Air Force reservist was ordered to spend 90 days in prison Thursday after he was convicted of spying on his adopted daughter with a Web cam and downloading child pornographic videos.

Thomas Edward Anderson, 41, of 501 Goldleaf Drive, was charged with 10 counts each of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of secret peeping. On Thursday, a jury of six women and six men found him guilty on all counts. ...

The case which led to a joint investigation by the Wayne County Sheriff's Office and the SBI began in April 2005 when Clara Anderson discovered a Web cam in her bedroom, hidden in a heating and air conditioning vent and connected to a computer.

Sheriff's detectives were called to investigate and the computer was seized. (more)

U.S. Customs Breaks Privacy Laws

The Department of Homeland Security is breaking privacy laws by failing to tell the public all the ways it uses personal information to target passengers boarding flights entering or leaving the U.S., according to a draft report the Government Accountability Office plans to release tomorrow. (more)

Sing-a-long while you read.

Colombia Admits Illegal Wiretapping Operation

Columbia - An illegal police wiretapping operation against journalists, opposition figures and government members included the man President Alvaro Uribe defeated in the last election, his defense minister acknowledged Tuesday.

Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos insisted that the Uribe administration was unaware of the police spying operation. "We don't know who ordered these interceptions and the government has never learned what they contain," he said.

Santos refused to reveal all the known victims of the wiretapping...

Political opponents and investigative journalists have complained for years of being harassed and wiretapped by Colombia's security forces, who have received U.S. eavesdropping equipment and training for criminal investigations against drug traffickers and leftist rebels. (more)

Quote of the Day

"Anything you use on a daily basis that requires research, they're trying to steal," said Ray Morrow, special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh division...

America has no friends when it comes to the research that gives its companies, universities and government a competitive edge. Countries all over the world _ including friends and allies _ would like to have that research, and they would love to get it for free. ... While private companies have long been aware of economic espionage, it's largely new territory for universities. (more)

Quote of the Day

"I know there is technology with which you can eavesdrop and hear a cockroach fart. But from what I saw our agents had watched too many American movies." ~Adam Lusekelo, Daily News columnist in Dar es Salaam humorously describing the Tanzanian Secret Service. (more)
Adam, our agents look the pretty much the same. (more)