[LINK] Google engineer finds British spyware on PCs and smartphones

[Nicholas English]

So ... the figleaf is "criminal investigation", how could anyone(!!)
complain about that

FinSpy surveillance servers hacked & software stolen: details and
background (
http://darkernet.in/finspy-surveillance-servers-hacked-software-stolen-details-and-background/


<snip> "... a statement issued by Gamma International, which owns the
software, said that their server had been broken into and that several
demonstration copies of FinSpy had been stolen. However, analysts suspect
that these were no demo copies. Yesterday several of the FinSpy servers
began to disappear, including Singapore, Indonesia, Mongolia and Brunei. A
server in Bahrain briefly shut down before reappearing elsewhere. Other
countries known to be targeted include: Australia, Qatar, Ethiopia, the
Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, the United Arab Emirates and the United
States. Interestingly, the I.P. addresses hosting FinSpy in Australia
(121.215.253.151) and Bahrain can be traced to Canberra and Manama, their
respective capital cities. FinSpy is marketed as a tool for Governments to
spy on criminals, but invariably is used... " </snip>

I worked for an organisation (educational!!) where the default setting was
assume everything was recorded from physical conversations to all
electronic communication, all in the name of 'organisational intelligence'
<sic>. They had a sysadmin who couldn't manage Exchange but was happy to
leaverage consultants for the best in 'organisational intelligence' tools.

Anyway, power is it's own legitimacy... just ask Bashar al-Assad

Nicholas English


On 2 September 2012 02:33, Kim Holburn <kim at holburn.net> wrote:

> "Legitimate spyware"?
>
> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/finspy_gamma_polcie_spying/
>
> > Google engineer finds British spyware on PCs and smartphones
> >
> > FinSpy turning up in dictatorships across the world
> >
> > By Iain Thomson in San Francisco • Get more from this author
> >
> > Posted in Security, 31st August 2012 23:30 GMT
> >
> > Two security researchers have found new evidence that legitimate spyware
> sold by British firm Gamma International appears to be being  used by some
> of the most repressive regimes in the world.
> >
> > Google security engineer Morgan Marquis-Boire and Berkeley student Bill
> Marczak were investigating spyware found in email attachments to several
> Bahraini activists. In their analysis they identified the spyware infecting
> not only PCs but a broad range of smartphones, including iOS, Android, RIM,
> Symbian, and Windows Phone 7 handsets.
> >
> > The spying software has the capability to monitor and report back on
> calls and GPS positions from mobile phones, as well as recording Skype
> sessions on a PC, logging keystrokes, and controlling any cameras and
> microphones that are installed.
> >
> > They report the code appears to be FinSpy, a commercial spyware sold to
> countries for police criminal investigations. FinSpy was developed by the
> German conglomerate Gamma Group and sold via the UK subsidiary Gamma
> International. In a statement to Bloomberg, managing director Martin Muench
> denied the company had any involvement.
>
> ....
>
> --
> Kim Holburn
> IT Network & Security Consultant
> T: +61 2 61402408  M: +61 404072753
> mailto:kim at holburn.net  aim://kimholburn
> skype://kholburn - PGP Public Key on request
>
>
>
>
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