When you move into new facilities or new offices, and when previous executives move out, get transferred, or (especially) fired, that is an important time to have your offices swept for possible surveillance devices.

The former president of the Fraternal Order of Police in Chicago conveniently left behind a live covert video camera with remote access. […]

A video of a UK bugging incident has recently been released. Earlier this year, a contentious battle over the sale of the Ritz hotel in London, by the Barclay brothers, Sir Fredrick and David, resulted in a full on eavesdropping operation against Sir Frederick and his daughter.

Sounding much like a John le Carré novel, the COO of Credit Suisse resigns after a failed spy operation on a former execuitve, and the contractor who hired the spies commits suicide.

Neil Gerrard, the global co-chair of Dechert’s lucrative white-collar crime practice, claims that corporate investigators from Diligence International have committed various torts connected to the alleged spying, including trespass and misuse of private information. He is reportedly seeking £100,000 in damages.

In the Conversations in Close Protection podcast by Chuck Randolph and Chris Story, they recently interviewed Bob Nichols, head of NSA-Global Security Consultants, and discussed his incredible experience during the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. Bob and his security team were out to dinner but quickly found themselves in the middle of the terrorist attack. His story of how his team reacted and helped lead a number of other guests to safety is worth listening to by everyone in the security and protection fields.

Recent incidents serve as a warning- recording devices are easily secreted in a variety of places and can be very difficult to find. All someone needs is access to the target location. This could include employees, executives, cleaners, contractors, former employees who may still have access, or even the public at large...

Trains, planes, buses, restaurants, or just on the street- keep your conversations private! Lessons learned...

Unknown to many is that office phone systems have a similar "feature" to the notorious Apple FaceTime bug. "Auto-answer" features can allow incoming calls to any extension to be automatically answered and microphones turned on without the target user taking any action, leaving the phone on hook, and not even knowing it had happened.

While trying to grab some last minute Christmas gifts I couldn't help but notice a large display of eavesdropping devices at throw-away prices. Be on the look out as such covert devices become more and more popular. They may start showing up in your office.

What could be hiding inside a picture frame? Street artist Banksy installed a shredder that, when remotely activated, proceeded to destroy, half way, his painting that just sold for approximately 1.1 million dollars.

Conducting sweeps of conference rooms prior to confidential meetings is critical if you want to protect the information being discussed.  A felony wiretapping charge is being brought against a past board member due to the discovery of a hidden digital recorder being discovered during a confidential meeting. It was found when a participant in the meeting accidentally knocked a TV remote off of a table and found the recorder hidden under a cloth when retrieving the remote. It was determined that it had been recording for over an hour.

Rolls Royce has introduced their new "Privacy Suite" for the Phantom extended wheelbase model. No more listening in (from the front seat) to the conversations of the CEO or celebrity, in the rear. The Privacy Suite uses electrochromatic glass (also known as "smart glass") to separate the front seats from the rear compartments. They have also added a "frequency specific" sound-absorption material that inhibits the transmission of conversations from the rear to the front of the vehicle.