Corporate Espionage and Countermeasures News
News updates and articles are presented regarding corporate espionage, eavesdropping, electronic countermeasures, and TSCM. Please subscribe for automatic updates by entering your email address in the box on the right. You can search past articles and view archives in the column on the right.
Excerpts from recent posts are shown below. Click on the title to view the entire article.
School district worker arrested- some people still don’t realize eavesdropping is illegal!
If you are going to record -video or audio- there is a good chance you may be breaking the law. You may have good motivation, but don't expect the courts - or your co-workers- to see it that way. Such devices can appear anywhere, at [...]
Early Spy Camera- circa 1890.
The temptation to use technology for spying has been with us for a long time. Carl Stormer purchased his first hidden camera- a "C.P. Stirn Concealed Vest Spy Camera"- when he was a young student of mathematics in Oslo. It was so small that the lens fit through the buttonhole in his vest with a cord that led down to his pocket, allowing him to snap his secret photos.
Radio history: Mickey Gurdus dies at 73, monitored radio waves for Israel Radio.
Interesting story of a man who listened to radio signals for a living. Mickey monitored the airwaves for the state-run Israel Radio and passed on information to his editors — and, sometimes, intelligence agents — to hijackings, invasions and revolutions, even intercepting a telephone call between the White House and Air Force One.
Tech Alert: RF Vulnerability found in Clear-Com wired headsets.
Analog audio was being transmitted from wired Clear-Com headsets. The signals were not intended to emanate in the air, but we were able to receive and demodulate the audio from at least 20 feet away.
Internal retaliation and corruption lead to eavesdropping.
Motivation for eavesdropping #139: Retaliation Against Employees. High school district police chief charged with eavesdropping.
Counterespionage news… we’ve been on the road but trying to get back into the blog
The last month has been a bit busy so we were not able to post articles as regularly as we had hoped. News hasn't stopped though. Here are a few recent articles worth looking at. >The Corporate Ecosystem >Loss of Confidential Thumb Drive >Is Facebook Listening?
President of Ecuador finds hidden camera – in place since 2009. How good were his sweeps?
A camera was discovered on September 14 in the office of Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno when staff noticed a warm spot on the wall. Moreno later claimed that former President Correa was spying on him. The camera was apparently installed many years ago but his daily countermeasures sweeps didn't notice it.
When the outsider gets inside – Robotics firm discovers spy in their conference room.
CEO of robotics firm Medrobotics noticed a stranger in the conference room. The individual falsely claimed to be there for meetings with top executives but appears to have been a spy, going after their trade secrets.
Tech alert: Ultrasonic inaudible sounds can take over your phone or computer.
Voice recognition systems built into your phone, computer, or other devices, such as Siri, Google Now, Cortana, or Alexa, can respond to ultrasonic sounds far above your hearing range. If a computer or smartphone has the voice features activated, the device could secretly be given commands to make phone calls, access malicious websites, or many other vulnerable features without the user being aware. This could be used for deliberate eavesdropping, surveillance, or other form of espionage attack.
Risks of BYOD at the bank- and at the office
An interesting article on WeLiveSecurity.com looks at the security risks that may come from allowing the use of smart phones in banks. The author is quick to point out that the same concerns can also apply to any corporate environment.