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A DHS official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the letter has not been publicly released added that the devices were detected in a day trial that began in January with equipment from a Las Vegas-based DHS contractor, ESD America. That presumably includes the FBI. Legislators have been raising alarms about the use of Stingrays in the capital since at least , when Goldsmith and other security-company researchers conducted public sweeps that located suspected unauthorized devices near the White House, the Supreme Court, the Commerce Department and the Pentagon, among other locations.
Aaron Turner, president of the mobile security consultancy Integricell, was among the experts who conducted the sweeps, in part to try to drum up business. Little has changed since, he said.
Like other major world capitals, he said, Washington is awash in unauthorized interception devices. Foreign embassies have free rein because they are on sovereign soil.
Shutting down rogue Stingrays is an expensive proposition that would require wireless network upgrades the industry has been loath to pay for, security experts say. It could also lead to conflict with U. In addition to federal agencies, police departments use them in at least 25 states and the District of Columbia, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
After the news reports about Stingrays in Washington, Rep. In a reply, FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said the agency had created a task force to combat illicit and unauthorized us e of the devices. In that letter, the FCC did not say it had identified such use itself but cited media reports of the security sweeps. That task force appears to have accomplished little. Read Aug 07 Live Ohio special election results: House seat up for grabs.
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Leave a respectful comment. Share on Facebook Share on Twitter. Homeland Security discovers possible phone spying in Washington, D.
Nor did it say how many it detected or where. Please check your inbox to confirm your email address. Experts on cellular interception say that various IMSI catchers have distinctive designs, making it clear from the resulting cellular signals and behavior whether they were made by American companies or by manufacturers in other countries. The same May 22 letter revealed that DHS was aware of reports that a global cellular network messaging, called SS7, was being used to spy on Americans through their cell phones. Indonesia quake rescue continues Rescuers in Lombok pull people alive from the rubble two days after a devastating earthquake struck the Indonesian island. Many foreign embassies are also thought to operate their own powerful cell tower simulators. Design This wild new skyscraper is topped with a functioning waterfall Leadership 5 unspoken rules of being a manager that no one tells you about News Amazon basically wants to turn Whole Foods into a drive-thru.
Ron Wyden , D-Ore. The letter didn't specify what entity operated the devices and left open the possibility that there could be alternative explanations for the suspicious cellular signals collected by the federal testing program last year.
The discovery bolsters years of independent research suggesting that foreign intelligence agencies use sophisticated interception technology to spy on officials working within the hub of federal power in the nation's capital. Experts in surveillance technology say that IMSI catchers - sometimes known by one popular brand name, Stingrays - are a standard part of the toolkit for many foreign intelligence services, including for such geopolitical rivals as Russia and China.
The DHS letter came in response to a meeting last month in which Wyden pushed for more aggressive federal response to cellular system insecurity. IMSI catchers are widely used by local, state and federal police, as well as foreign intelligence agencies. The devices work by simulating cell towers to trick nearby phones into connecting, allowing the IMSI catchers to collect calls, texts and data streams.
Unlike some other forms of cell-phone interception, IMSI catchers must be near targeted devices in order to work. When they are in range, IMSI catchers also can deliver malicious software to targeted devices for the purpose of stealing information stored on them or conducting longer-term monitoring of communications.
The same May 22 letter revealed that DHS was aware of reports that a global cellular network messaging, called SS7, was being used to spy on Americans through their cell phones. Such surveillance, which can intercept calls and locate cell phones from anywhere in the world, are sometimes used in conjunction with IMSI catchers. ESD America, a defense and law enforcement technology contractor based in Las Vegas, has reported detecting IMSI catchers throughout the Washington area while conducting testing for private clients.
The company, which said it has federal contracts, declined to comment on work it has done for the U.