July 25, 2007
Big Brother’s latest surveillance plan: Planting Spyware On Your Systems.
I take a week off to get my head out of a reality distortion field, only to learn I missed something so eerie… check it…
On July 18, Ars Technica reported that a person making bomb hoaxes was busted by the FBI’s use of spyware on the suspect’s computer. The spyware in question is called the “Computer & Internet Protocol Address Verifier” (CIPAV), and was installed on the suspect’s laptop remotely and silently to monitor his activities… like any spyware would be installed.Wired has more details on the malware along with the data the “program” collected.
This isn’t the first time malware was used by law enforcement: In 1999, a key logger was used to snag mobster Nicodemo Scarfo. Recently, an appeals court made a decision on a case where the DEA used key loggers to trap two suspects because they were using PGP and Hushmail (Link to CNET story). The court sided with the DEA citing “probable cause” in the case. The court also added:
“e-mail and Internet users have no expectation of privacy in the To/From addresses of their messages or the IP addresses of the websites they visit because they should know that these messages are sent and these IP addresses are accessed through the equipment of their Internet service provider and other third parties.”
This may not sound like much of a big deal… until you consider that we’re currently under an illegal (and most likely unconstitutional) NSA surveillance program. Now we have our privacy being slowly chipped away in the name of “national security” and “probable cause” while those who are supposed to enforce the law are doing so by violating it.
Security Corrupted? According to a recent survey by CNET, security companies have their anti-malware software set to detect and remove police spyware. The companies were also asked if they had a government or court order to not scan police-malware. Most said no, but McAfee and Microsoft refused to answer the question. Remember: The NSA reportedly “helped” Microsoft to “secure” Vista.
For an anti-malware to ignore any type of malware is dangerous. If a black hat knows what malware is ignored, he can easily use the white-listed program to craft an unstoppable, irremovable menace. As if current malware isn’t enough of a problem, if a security program won’t detect a malware because of a court order, black hats will have a field day raping and hijacking our computers, and we can thank our government for “protecting” us from spam and identity theft.
Looks like we’re on our own with this one, folks.
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12 Comments on Big Brother’s latest surveillance plan: Planting Spyware On Your Systems. »
July 25, 2007
Big Brother’s latest surveillance plan: Planting Spyware On Your ... | Spyware News and Information @ 1:01 am (Pingback)
[…] Original post by Mr. Roboto […]
Illusive Mind @ 4:48 am:
Lucky nothing like that could ever happen in Australia…. NOT!
Scary shit.
Merzmensch @ 9:20 am:
Really creepy thing. The NSA-Security-mashup on the monitors on that photo (CIPAV meets Google Earth) is also … ehm… disturbing.
I suppose, the teen-hoaxer, who used Italian proxy etc. was cool enough not to use Internet Explorer, but why he’ve used Microsoft Windows at all? How got CIPAV to his PC? Perhaps were the spyware-hole directly located on the hacked Italian Proxy server?
Well, but this fable teaches us to stay away from Microsoft Vista and - alas! - from Apple OS also (according some sources they both have the official blessed and accredited vulnerability). Perhaps, we have to use only open source programs, and also try to use programs coming not from USA, but e.g. from Russia or China. Surely, they could also made some dangerous built-ins, but they haven’t this pathetic pretence to rule the world and to be world police… (To have some hackers or virus on the own PC isn’t that pleasant, but to have some government agents isn’t pleasant at al, even if I’ve work stuff, birthday pictures but nothing injuring the national security of USA). But of course, they (not in USA located companies) will be GLAD on principle to deny any offers from USA security organizations, just GLAD to say “no” and to continue their job. ‘Cause for USA-located antivirus companies such “no” could prove to be very unappetizing.
Btw. I’ll comment your great “Avalon” board later. Was really impressed
microchip @ 11:18 am:
Not that it should concern me as I’m from Belgium, but please do plant some spyware on my system too, I wanna start a collection, I’m already collecting Windows viruses which I ever now and then get by mail
So please, plant some spyware on my Linux system, I wanna see what it will do
Ak!mbo @ 6:14 pm:
Jesus Christ, this sounds like the plot from some spy movie..
It’s a crazy world we’re living in, with governmental / corporate actions interfering in our privacy, illegally and as previously stated “probably unconstitutionally”.
I’m glad I’m living in pretty liberal Norway, though the N.European trend is more and more hostile and aggressive police action against your average law abiding citizen..
As if everyone needs to be disciplined into being nice.
1984 « TaTooKa’s BLoG @ 11:31 pm (Pingback)
[…] 25 07 2007 Leyendo en Cyberpunk Review me entero (mejor dicho, me acuerdo) del hecho aquel sobre la NSA (National Security Agency) […]
July 26, 2007
anon @ 11:18 pm:
Talk about taking quotes out of context. Whats the following supposed to mean:
Remember: The NSA reportedly “helped” Microsoft to “secure” Vista.
NSA has also “helped” to “secure” linux too. SELinux kernel patches where released quite a while ago and they are currently being shipped with many of the main linux distributions and their kernels. Does that somehow now make NSA more spookier ? Propaganda is allways good but clever use of “quotes” and implying nsa / microsoft “cooperation” just makes most sane people laugh at the tinfoil hats.
July 27, 2007
Ni @ 5:40 am:
So glad I’m still on Win98. I have my little AVG Anti-Virus, and I’m all set. I also recently heard all the viruses are being written for XP and Vista. *laughs*
July 31, 2007
MrAdventure @ 8:11 pm:
Bonus! More wiretapping and surveillance without warrants is going through this week. Here’s and article about it.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aNO.ihVL7fOo&refer=us
We’re in crazy town, and the king has lost his mind.
August 1, 2007
Merzmensch @ 7:25 am:
The Orwellesque perspective of our future is really disturbing. Europe seems also to go the same way. I’m from Germany, here we have a paranoical Federal Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble. His nickname is “Stasi 2.0″. He lately had really a lot of plans and projects “helping our country against the terrorism” (well, the pity thing is: the terrorist knows his ways to communicate without observation; the normal Bürger of Germany doesn’t, so the whole story is about observation of the normal people…)
August 22, 2007
binaryslave @ 7:52 pm:
Maybe it is only hope, but doesnt everyone else think that as long as this technology is being used against us there will be those who will be able to fight back and be able to work around or against the technology for personel protection from big brother?
October 8, 2007
Minnesota mother becomes RIAA’s first victim. @ 10:53 pm (Pingback)
[…] the current state of hacking technology, her claim may not be far off. After all, if the US government can hack systems to plant spyware, who knows what black-hats… or the RIAA… can plant on your system without your […]