In addition to the US usage of “laser spying” against the Russians, Nasa technology that has previously been used to detect faint radio signals from space, is now being used to eavesdrop on a room where the curtains are blocking the windows. Using a “horn antenna” this “microwave” technology can blast a wave of energy that is between 30GHZ and !00Ghz through a building wall. If people are speaking inside a room, any flimsy surface, such as clothing will be vibrating, and cause a modulation of the radio beam as it reflects from the surface. It is then amplified and analyzed.

Simpler systems using the planted bug can also use a laser beam to transmit conversations. Such a device was found in the offices of Trinidad & Tobagos’s director of public prosecutions this year.

Of course, if you’re a BlackBerry user, better be careful who’s got access to your device!

The software comes from the same company that has enabled spying on most other business phones (as well as personal computers), and as with the others, it runs in the background, stealthily collecting text message and phone call logs even once these records have been deleted from the phone. The program also taps into the BlackBerry’s GPS system to alert the spy of the device’s whereabouts at 15 minute intervals.

And how do you – the spy – get to check up on all this gathered data? Just through your standard ol’ web browser…

Many of the BlackBerry users in that part of the world, which encompasses the swiftly growing Dubai, are businessmen who use their BlackBerrys to conduct confidential communications and transactions all the time. The scandal has left over half of Etisalat users with the intention of canceling their contracts with their nosy provider (we wonder why not all of them?).

The spyware would not have been discovered were it not for poor planning on the spies’ part. Most people were very eager to get the upgrade – we all do this. New version of Firefox? New iTunes? We download the upgrades without thinking twice. Because there was such a flood of people accessing the new software simultaneously, the servers were overwhelmed, which somehow caused an unusually fast depletion of BlackBerry batteries across the area.

A few of the more technology-inclined users started to scratch under the surface and discovered that their upgrades weren’t exactly kosher. It turns out the spyware was developed by an American company called SS8, which markets ‘lawful interception’ – that’s a very loose application of lawful, Etisalat.

The Canadian company that makes BlackBerry says they have had absolutely nothing to do with the scandalous app. Their statement did confirm Etisalat’s plans to bug BlackBerrys with the purpose of having private communications conveyed to a central server.

Was the purpose of the mass invasion of privacy Big-Brother-like? Or was it just a way to get information from a few suspicious fellows already under some sort of investigation without setting off any alarm bells?

Either way, the botched spying attempt has set off all sorts of alarms – exactly the sort of thing that will worry international businesses looking to stake a claim in Dubai.

Vital stats: Images and film recorded in color, and there’s a little switch to help you flick between the two modes. One press of a button to start recording and to stop. When you plug it into your PC via the USB drive capability, you’ll be charging the Li-ion battery as well.

Plus:

• Image resolution: 1280 x 1024 pixel, JPEG file format
• Video resolution: 640 x 480 pixel, AVI file format
• Built-in 4GB memory
• Yours for $49.00

Things we’re a little skeptical about: First off, it’s a little too bright – anything that bright is going to draw unnecessary attention to itself. Second, what if someone actually turns to you, cigarette dangling in mouth, and motions to your lighter (that you of course, have out for the clicking). Er, sorry mate, it doesn’t work…just carrying it around cos it looks pretty?

If you can talk your way out of that one, then go for it.

Pics courtesy of www.gadget.brando.com.hk

The Predator B surveillance craft hovers up to 50,000-feet in the air for up to 18 hours at a time. It captures video and infrared data for anything within a 25-mile radius. That’s some pretty broad coverage – drug and cigarette smugglers beware!

The Predator will seek its prey along Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence Seaway, an area that has traditionally seen high drug and cig traffic. The aircraft’s remote controllers will be based at the U.S. Army’s Fort Drum in New York.

The first unmanned surveillance aircraft used on the northern border was launched in February, from the Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota.

pics courtesy of wired.com and darkgovernment.com

The robot is about 6.5 feet long and covered with camouflage (though if examined from close range, it’s not going to fool anyone). To make it, researchers studied the movements of live snakes, so as to make the mechanical version’s movements as realistic as possible. Controllable by laptop, the spying serpent uses its flexible joints to slither around and squeeze through caves, tunnels, pipes, crevices and buildings, all the while sending images back to the base. It can also hoist itself up, snake-charmer style, to view over obstructions to its line of vision.

When it officially joins the ranks of the IDF’s techie gadgets, the robot should be able to help in rescuing people hidden within collapsed buildings. On the flip side, the extra functionality that’s still being worked on is the ability for the snake to carry and place explosives.

The development of the spy gadget was based on a project carried out by the Ben-Gurion University in Israel, which created not only a robotic snake, but also a robotic feline that can scale walls and a canine robot that responds to people’s movements.

What the IDF snake cannot do is glide through water, which is a feature of the 2005 Japanese serpent robot developed by the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

Just like the night vision specs used by the military and special operations, this gadget uses infrared LEDs to shine a wide beam of light as far as 50 feet in front of you. The light, of course, is not detectable to human eyes, but it allows for a monochrome image of what’s lurking in the shadows to show on the single-eye viewfinder.

The gadget’s not exactly small – 7″ x 10″ x 12″ – and does require 5 AA batteries to function for about 3 hours. Batteries aren’t included in the $90 price tag, but we recommend investing in the rechargeable kind, otherwise your after-dark sleuthing could end up costing you a pretty penny. The head band is fully adjustable, so no worries about your goggles falling off or cutting off blood circulation. Phew.

image courtesy of spymuseumstore.org

So how does this inconspicuous baby work? First, charge her up – the built-in rechargeable battery means that even when the device isn’t plugged into the wall, it can still operate as a spy gadget. Then, slip a SIM card into the little slot on the side. When you’re ready to start listening in on someone’s ‘ears only’ conversation, just call the SIM card’s number from your own phone. Simple, isn’t it?

Available on Brando, it’ll set you back $66. Click here for specs, etc.

It records color footage plus audio in digital format, which can be viewed on the LCD screen of the included portable wireless receiver. You can also hook the receiver up to your PC for better viewing and footage management. And just in case you’re wondering what we mean by portable, the wireless receiver is fits-in-your-pocket size, so if you’re traveling it’s no hassle to cart the extra piece of equipment with you. For longer recordings, you can insert a large capacity SD card for extra long/high quality videos.

The lens is subtly located on the calculator’s side, which makes us think you’re going to have to be careful about placing the calc at the right elevation to catch the right frame, but this pic doesn’t seem to think so.

We suggest you take the device for a test shoot before the big meeting.

Cost: $192.50; Click here for specs

Pics courtesy of chinavasion.com

Yesterday, the Lebanese police held a show-and-tell with the spy gadgets seized during the arrests. The devices included an Igloo water cooler outfitted with landscape-surveying sensors, a car battery charger that was allegedly used for storing and transmitting data and USB memory sticks with intricate maps of Lebanon.

According to the police, some of the maps demarcate bridges and military posts targeted by Israeli bombs in the 2006 war against the Lebanon-based, Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah.

Lebanese officials say they have identified and arrested 14 spies with ties to Israel’s Mossad in this most recent bout of spy-hunting. The campaign to ferret out those operating on behalf of Israel in the ongoing espionage war between the two countries is not a new one – but it certainly seems to be coming to a head.

As a police officer showed off the sequestered goods at HQ, he explained: “Based on the investigation, it appears that their basic logistics mission focused on defining locations, targets, buildings and outposts as demanded by the enemy intelligence.”

The officer read from a pre-prepared statement and would not answer any questions. His colleague, whose identity was shielded by a black mask, displayed the gadgets, which were reportedly given to the agents by the Mossad. The spies were to use the gadgets to monitor specific people and strategic targets and to conduct surveys of Lebanese and Syrian territory.

The agents, said the officer, used the equipment to transmit intel via “coded radio messages” through satellite or the Internet. One of the coded transmission gadgets on display was fitted into a cabinet.

Apparently also in the agents’ possession were forged Lebanese passports and blank job apps the police say were to be used by potential Mossad recruits. This spate of arrests has come about largely from information provided by the Lebanese ex-general who last month was arrested for spying for Israel.

The Israeli government has of course made no comments on the arrests, and the public is left to wonder what fate awaits the rounded-up spies and how the arrests will affect Israeli intelligence ops against the recognized terrorist group.

photo courtesy of www.ynetnews.com (AFP)

It seems to be a rather unnecessary precaution in this day of mass cyber espionage networks and high-tech spy gadgets, but the spokeswoman for the Jiangsu National Security Education Museum could not have been more clear on the rationale behind the policy, as shared with the Associated Press: “We don’t want such sensitive spy information to be exposed to foreigners, so they are not allowed to enter.”

She added that the visitors they have turned away thus far “are pretty understanding since this is not your average museum.” Since the museum’s opening on April 13, approximately 500 citizens a day have walked the four halls that tell the story of Chinese security and intelligence methods since 1927, when the communists began their revolt. People who look Western are turned away without delay, but those who have recognizably Chinese features enter without having to show documented proof of nationality.

As per the Associated Press, the collection includes maps that pass for decks of cards; hollowed-out coins for carrying secret docs; guns that look like pens, lipsticks, and tobacco pipes; and a radio mic posing as a fake pocket calculator, as well as once confidential documents and other security service relics.

Seeing as the press has got wind of this much, it wouldn’t be too difficult to infiltrate the museum itself. From the sound of it, you won’t find anything that would be of any value to contemporary intelligence operations! But we have to admit that the exclusivity does add somewhat to the spy museum’s allure. In fact, we reckon it’s very possible the no-foreigners rule is a marketing ploy to entice the Chinese populace to “get in on the secrets” that only they have access to…

This spy tie from Brando carries an inlaid camera hidden within the fabric. The pin-hole lens blends into the tie’s pattern, which provides excellent camouflage for the device. The camera is remote operated – the remote disguised to look like a keychain.

It shoots color video (352 x 288 pixel resolution, 12 frames per second, AVI file format), as well as audio, and comes with a rechargeable Li-on battery. It has 2GB of built-in memory capacity and it’s yours for $66.  You just have to get over the fact that it’s got an elastic neck. Sorry Bond, no Italian silk here.

image courtesy of gadget.brando.com.hk

Last week, the newspaper ran an article announcing a GPS-based locater device that even amateurs can budget for. Usually 500 bucks up front, plus $50/month for service, a company called Zoombak, has figured out an 80% discount on a tracking gadget that’s pager-size, and $15/month will get you all the tracking service your spying heart desires.

Zoombak’s marketing the device as a tool that’ll help you keep track of your belongings: cars, children, your children’s pets and backpacks – you name it. A stolen car’s not a problem if it’s carrying a Zoombak, nor is a lost dog or a missing child.

Makes sense at first glance, but let’s face it – unless you have a car that tends to go missing often – you’re unlikely to outfit it with a Zoombak on the offchance it will get stolen 15 months from now, especially considering you’ll have to charge it every 3 to 4 days.

So let’s call the compact Zoombak what is it – a spy gadget, many versions of which have been employed in spy thrillers – be they books or films – for decades.

On Zoombak’s site, you can track your device on an earth map (MSFT not Google, for those who mind), but NY Times reporter and expert gadget tester David Pogue does mention the map is too small, so brush up on your zoom and pan skills. Trails mapping where the device has been over the course of time (while you’re not checking in on it) are updated every 4 hours.

You can get an email or text notification if someone’s found you out and turns off the tracker, or when it dies cos it’s run out of battery power. Other mobile perks include being able to tap in to the Zoombak’s location from your cell phone.

The Zoomback operates on T-Mobile’s network, so wherever T-Mobile service is spotty or non-existent, you can expect the same from your Zoom.

image courtesy of www.zoombak.com

The Advisor will be responsible for keeping one step ahead of the gadget landscape, making sure that the UK’s intelligence and counterterrorism efforts around the world are well equipped with the most up to date technologies and methods.

Candidates for the high-profile role are required to have world-class scientific expertise and credibility, excellent strategic skills, outstanding influencing and communication skills, and a successful track record in complex project management.

Surprisingly, the role is intended to be a part-time one, requiring only two or three days a week for a five-year term. It is expected that these parameters will appeal to those conducting academic scientific research that they would like to continue while simultaneously taking on the “unique and challenging” role at MI5.

Part of the challenge will be to have a tech vision that is futuristic. “It will involve a sort of future gazing to see where technology will be taking us in a year or so,” said Professor John Beddington, the British government’s chief scientific advisor.

The British media has had a ball comparing the role to that of Bond’s master gadget man. Although the focus will be on using science and technology to support agents in the field, gadgets and techniques will likely be related to internet and in-field surveillance (think taps, bugs, and cyber security instead of underwater vehicles).

Professor Beddington further clarified that the advisor would have “to frustrate terrorism to prevent espionage hurting the UK, protect our critical national infrastructure and to frustrate the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.”

One thing’s certain – this job won’t leave the person who fills it twiddling his thumbs!

The application deadline is April 24, 2009.

photo courtesy of www.mpg.de

And Lightning GPS clearly had their spy thinking caps on when they came up with the LiveWire NavGenius, a sneaky GPS tracking gadget built specifically to help you snoop on unsuspecting navigation-device users. Combining awesome web connectivity and the functionality to record all of the users’ road action, this gadget – which hits the market this month – is more than willing to travel and tell.

The device comes with two manuals: one explains all spying capabilities in detail, and the other – clearly intended for the spied upon – leaves out all the juicy bits. The gadget streams live data of the user’s location to the web every 10 seconds, as well as information about the ‘way’ the user drives – newly licensed teenagers beware!

Of course, if spying isn’t what you had in mind (yeah, right), the LiveWire NavGenius’s 2-way messaging system can also receive new addresses and routes from an armchair driver, seated by his/her web-connected computer at home. What will your detective work cost you? $600 for the gadget, plus $40/month for the 10-second updates.

image courtesy of www.lightninggps.com