From The Mainichi, December 8, 2016

 MITO — An eavesdropping device was found in a waiting room for conservative members of the Mito Municipal Assembly, local city government officials and other sources told the Mainichi Shimbun on Dec. 7.
Ibaraki Prefectural Police seized the device and are investigating the case which they suspect could constitute trespassing into the building and violation of the Radio Act.

According to Mito Municipal Government officials, it was tipped off about the bug on Dec. 6. Specialized workers hired by the local government began searching for the device from the evening of Dec. 7 and found it in a waiting room for three assembly members from “Suiseikai” — a conservative parliamentary group — on the first floor of the temporary two-story prefabricated assembly building. The bug plugs into an electric outlet.

The Mito Municipal Government is still using a temporary office building after its building was damaged by the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.

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We don’t have much detail on this discovery, but there are a few security points worth considering from this report.

  1. The government officials were tipped off about the device. That indicates that it was not found during a regularly scheduled sweep. One may wonder how long the device was there. Regular inspections will help to understand the scope of the incident and help determine what information may have been compromised.
  2. The device was found in a “waiting room”. Often the focus of a sweep will be major offices and conference rooms, while common areas such as waiting rooms may be ignored. It’s important to pay attention to any areas where conversations may take place.
  3. The building was a temporary office building. Anytime there is construction, remodeling, or relocating of offices it is also a time to be more vigilant at protecting assets, including information assets. Many outside contractors will have had access to the facility, physical security may not be adequate or may not be as good as it was at the previous location, and executives and employees may be less observant being in somewhat unfamiliar surroundings.
  4. Devices that plug into electric outlets are extremely common and very inexpensive. They can be installed and left behind without any concern for retrieval, and often will appear as innocent USB chargers or other common devices.

USB Charger Eavesdropping Device
Eavesdropping device disguised as USB charger.