Ears and eyes
The Ears and the Eyes (and the GPS trackers)
What you will find on this website
Surveillance devices – Overview
Surveillance devices – Downloads
List of found surveillance devices
Archive containing the devices pictures in high resolution
Surveillance devices – Other resources
Surveillance industry – Overview
Surveillance industry – list of companies
Companies that were not included in the list
Surveillance industry – Trade shows and other events
Surveillance industry – Glossary
Surveillance industry – other resources
A camera and a microphone found on a bike in Bavaria (Germany)
A microphone found in a flat in Rome (Italy)
Two GPS trackers found under a vehicle in Berlin (Germany)
An audio surveillance device found in the Libertad anarchist library in Paris (France)
A surveillance camera found outdoors in Sevreau (France)
Update of the list of devices: 15 cases added (february 2022)
A GPS tracker and audio recording device found in a car in Leipzig (Germany)
A GLONASS tracker and microphones found in a car in Genoa (Italy)
Update of the list of devices: 7 cases added (june 2021)
Update of the list of devices: 11 cases added (may 2021)
Update of the list of devices (april 2021)
A GPS tracker found under a car in Besançon (France)
New page: overview of surveillance devices & Ears and Eyes newsletter
Update of the list of companies (november 2020)
Cameras found in the “ZAD du Carnet” in august (France)
A GPS tracker and a microphone found in a car in Berlin (Germany)
Update of the list of devices (november 2020)
A few informations coming from internal documents of the italian national police
Use of tracking devices by cops to target Wet’suwet’en solidarity organizing (in so-called “Canada”)
Microphones found in Follonica (Italy)
Microphones found in buildings in Pise and Follonica (Italy)
Examples of interactions between Italian justice and surveillance companies
New research focus : the surveillance industry
About two GPS trackers recently found in Greece
Two GPS trackers and a microphone found in a vehicle (Italy)
A surveillance device found during a gathering in Cuneo (Italy)
The ears of Pedrotta : microphones found in Turin (Italy)
Trente (Italy) : 6 microphones and a camera found
A bug found in Cremona (Italy)
Counter-surveillance techniques (Maßnahmen gegen Observation)
More precisions about the keylogger found in Italy
Bug found in Grenoble (France) in august 2018 : testimony and pictures
Three outdoor surveillance cameras found during a support day (France)
Call for contributions : surveillance devices hidden by cops in the spaces we live in
About us
The Ears and the Eyes (and the GPS trackers)
The States, according to their role of repression of individuals and groups doing subversive actions, put in place ways of keeping those individuals and groups under surveillance. It seems that some of this surveillance is done through the hiding of surveillance devices in the spaces we live in.
These devices take different forms : microphones, cameras, geolocation devices. Targeted spaces can be all the spaces we go through : buildings, vehicles, public space. These practices are sometimes legal, authorized by a judge for example, and sometimes not, done illegally by intelligence agencies.
So…
We noticed the lack of information available around us concerning this kind of surveillance. What is the real use of these devices by intelligence agencies? Which kind of devices are used? In which contexts? How efficiently? What can we do to oppose this kind of surveillance?
We want to gather informations about this subject. We want to focus on surveillance carried out by intelligence agencies and political police against individuals or groups doing subversive actions. Also, we limit ourselves to the study of physical surveillance devices hidden in the spaces inhabited by the surveilled individuals and groups (so we won’t talk about other kind of surveillance such as shadowing, phone-tapping and Internet surveillance).
What you will find on this website
Regularly, hidden surveillance devices are found in squats, activist spaces, vehicles, homes, or outside during public events. Sometimes these findings are made public on the Internet. We try to follow the news, and we publish these discoveries on the articles section of our website. We also publish an overview of surveillance devices and a list of found surveillance devices, which contains around 90 examples of devices found around the world since 1988.
When cops decide to spy on us using surveillance devices, they need to get the devices from somewhere. It seems that they often buy these devices from private companies. The companies that manufacture and market surveillance-related products and services to law enforcement agencies, governments, and armed forces, form what we call the surveillance industry. We publish a few resources about this industry, including a list of companies that sell physical surveillance devices designed to be hidden in spaces to law enforcement agencies.
Contact us
If you have questions or comments, or if you wish to contribute to the website, you can contact us.
Newsletter
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You can subscribe to our newsletter to receive news about our project by sending an email to:
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earsandeyes-subscribe@lists.riseup.net
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Emails are sent when a new device is discovered, or when one of our publications receives a major update. Everything that is sent to the newsletter is also posted on the website.
Autistici/Inventati
This website is hosted by the Autistici/Inventati collective. If you like our work, please consider giving them money to support their infrastructure costs.
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Surveillance devices
Surveillance devices – Overview
Cops and intelligence agencies sometimes use hidden physical surveillance devices – such as microphones, cameras, geolocation devices – to spy on individuals or groups doing subversive actions. The purpose of this page is to give a quick overview of these devices by answering the following questions:
Note that our goal is not to describe all of the surveillance devices in existence – such as the ones used to spy on big companies or governments. We are only interested in the devices that we believe to be likely to be used against individuals or groups doing subversive actions. Devices or features that we believe to be unlikely to be used in our context are marked as “out of scope” below.
The information below is based on our own research. We particularly used our list of found devices, and the numerous technical specifications available from our list of companies. This is a quick overview, and each of the topics below could be covered in much more detail. One day, we should publish a more comprehensive zine for this purpose.
When are they installed?
It seems that hidden physical surveillance devices are used by cops when they want to gather intelligence about specific individuals or groups, and traditional methods – physical surveillance, monitoring of phones and Internet connections, etc – are not effective enough.
The devices can be installed for long-term surveillance of a place or a vehicle, in which case they can stay in place for months or years before being removed by the cops – or in some cases, being found by the people under surveillance. They can also be installed for short-term surveillance of specific events.
In many countries, the installation of such devices is regulated by law, and must be authorized by a judge. Of course, as we know, cops often don’t respect the law.
Where are they hidden?
In buildings
Microphones found inside a power outlet in a building in Bologna, Italy, in january 2018
Hidden microphones and cameras can be installed in buildings to record the sound and image of what is happening inside. They can be installed both in personal homes or in collective spaces. Hidden devices have been found inside objects attached to walls, such as electrical outlets, ceiling lights, air vents, power strips, intercoms and electricity meters. Some have been found hidden inside furniture – in an amplifier, a television, or a kitchen hood. One has been found above a fake ceiling. And in one case, a device was found inside a wall – the hole drilled in the wall to install the device had been covered up with mortar.
Surveillance devices can also be installed inside buildings close to the actual place put under surveillance. Typically, such devices are installed behind windows, allowing them to record the image and/or sound of the place under surveillance, of its front door, or of the way leading to it.
In vehicles
![https://earsandeyes.noblogs.org/files/2021/01/Lecce-december-2017.png][](https://earsandeyes.noblogs.org/files/2021/01/Lecce-december-2017.png%5D%5B){kind=link}
Microphones and a GPS tracker found in the fuse box of a car in Lecce, Italy, in december 2017
Microphones and tracking surveillance devices can be installed in all types of vehicles – cars, trucks, motorbikes – to record the sound of what is happening in the vehicle, and its location.
They can be installed in parts of the vehicle accessible from the outside, sometimes attached with magnets. Such hidden devices have been found attached under vehicles, inside a wheel or in the spare wheel bracket, on a rear bumper, behind the horn grid, or behind the vehicle battery ventilation grid.
They can also be installed inside the vehicle. Such devices have been found between the car body and the interior coating, inside the car ceiling – including inside the part of the ceiling that hosts the interior light, in the interior air vents, inside the heads of the passenger seats, or under the dashboard – including behind the speedometer or in the fuse box.
Other
Hidden microphones and cameras can also be installed outside. In urban environements, hidden devices have been found in streets surrounding places put under surveillance, including inside a fake electric box or inside a fake rock. In rural environments, devices have been found hidden in the vegetation.
How do they work?
Power supply
Hidden surveillance devices need a power supply. The power can be supplied either by a battery or by the electrical system of the building or vehicle in which the device is installed. Sometimes, both sources of energy are present.
The devices are not necessarily turned on continuously. Some hidden microphones are able to turn on only when there is noise. Some hidden cameras are able to turn on only when there is movement by using an infrared sensor. Some tracking devices installed on a vehicle are able to turn on only when the vehicle is turned on, or only when it is moving by using a motion sensor. These features are useful both to save battery power if a device is powered by a battery, and to make it more difficult to detect the device.
Out of scope :
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devices using less traditional power sources, such as Power over Ethernet (PoE)
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devices using less traditional sensors to turn on only on specific conditions, such as vibration sensors, pressure sensors, magnetic sensors, and “trip wire” sensors
Data collection
Sound
Hidden devices can record sound using microphones.
Out of scope :
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devices that directly wiretap landline phones
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devices using less traditional sound recording techniques, such as optical microphones, contact microphones and microphone arrays
Image
Hidden devices can record image using cameras. Some devices include infrared cameras, able to “see in the dark”.
Location
The most common way for devices installed on a vehicle to record the vehicle location is by using the Global Positioning System (GPS), allowing them to obtain their own location almost everywhere on the world surface, without transmitting any data. If a device is equipped with a SIM card, it can also connect to the mobile phone network, and obtain its own location using the cell towers it connects to as reference.
Out of scope : devices that send signals on radio frequencies, so that the signals are received by cops nearby (typically following the vehicle placed under surveillance in their own vehicle) and used to estimate the device location.
Other
Out of scope : devices than can be connected to a computer keyboard, or hidden inside it, to record the keystrokes typed on the keyboard.
Data retrieval
Device equipped with a SIM card found in a vehicle in Italy, in august 2019
The data collected by a hidden surveillance device needs to be retrieved at some point by the cops. Data collected by a device can be retrieved through the mobile phone network if the device is equipped with a SIM card. It can also be retrieved through signals sent by the device on radio frequencies. This technique requires that another device, a receiver, is present nearby to receive the signals – the receiver can be hidden in another building or in a vehicle belonging to the cops for example.
Often, devices have an internal memory storage, for example an SD card, allowing them to store the collected data, so that it doesn’t have to be retrieved continuously. When this is the case, the data may be retrieved only at specific moments, for example only when the cops contact the device through the mobile phone network in order to retrieve its data. This feature can make devices more difficult to detect.
Out of scope : devices using less traditional data transmission techniques, such as physically accessing the devices to retrieve their data, transmitting data over Wi-Fi, over Ethernet, or over a direct satellite connection (for example to the Iridium satellite constellation), or using Power-Line Communication (PLC).
How to find them?
[[https://earsandeyes.noblogs.org/files/2021/01/Lecco-october-2010.jpg][Image]
Dismantled electrical outlet in which a microphone was found, in Lecco, Italy, in october 2010
First of all, devices can be found by manually searching for them in the place, vehicle, or outdoor environment suspected to contain hidden surveillance devices. If it is suspected that devices were installed recently, it can help to look for things out of place: furniture that has been moved, or parts of walls that have slightly changed color (which could indicate that a hole was drilled and then covered up). It can help to have the right tools, for example to dismantle electrical outlets in a building or to dismantle the interior of a vehicle. If a device is found, it is important not to stop there: others may be present!
Additionally, detection devices can be bought in specialized stores or on the Internet. Such devices include:
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radio frequency detectors, to detect devices that are transmitting data on radio frequencies at the time of detection
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camera lens detectors, to detect cameras
Professional equipment – spectrum analyzers, non-linear junction detectors, thermal imaging systems – can be more efficient, but it is very expensive. It is also possible to pay a specialized company to search for hidden devices, but it is also very expensive, and these kind of companies sometimes have strong links with the local authorities.
Out of scope : devices using discovery detection techniques, such as devices using light sensors to detect by themselves when they are discovered and alert the cops of the discovery.
Surveillance devices – Downloads
List of found surveillance devices
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In english:
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With pictures: list-pictures-en-2022-12.pdf
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Without pictures: list-en-2022-12.pdf
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En français :
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Avec photos : list-pictures-fr-2022-12.pdf
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Sans photos : list-fr-2022-12.pdf
Archive containing the devices pictures in high resolution
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Download here : devices-pictures.zip (100 MB)
Surveillance devices – Other resources
This page aims to list resources about surveillance devices that have been published by other people than us, and that are particularly relevant to our context.
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Aide technique à la surveillance et filature – le balisage (Technical assistance for surveillance and shadowing – putting beacons), internal document of the french intelligence services dated from the middle of the 2000s, is a manual explaining how to put and operate localization beacons on vehicles in order to surveil movements.
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Maßnahmen gegen Observation (Counter-surveillance techniques) is a booklet published in german in june 2011. It describes some surveillance techniques used by the States to surveil individuals and groups (especially in the context of Germany), and ways to oppose this surveillance.
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Surveillance industry
Surveillance industry – Overview
When cops decide to spy on us using surveillance devices, they need to get the devices from somewhere. It seems that they often buy these devices from private companies. The companies that manufacture and market surveillance-related products and services to law enforcement agencies, governments, and armed forces, form what we call the surveillance industry.
Although on this website we limit ourselves to the study of hidden physical surveillance devices, the surveillance industry develops all kind of repression tools to be used by law enforcement and intelligence agencies worldwide. Internet monitoring, interception of cellular communications, counter-surveillance equipment and biometrics technologies are only a few examples.
The companies participating in this industry aren’t spread evenly on the world map. In their 2016 report about the global surveillance industry, Privacy International commented on the geographical breakdown of the 528 surveillance companies taken into account in the report :
These companies are overwhelmingly based in economically advanced, large arms exporting states, with the United States of America (USA), United Kingdom (UK), France, Germany, and Israel comprising the top five countries in which the companies are headquartered.
Despite this, many of these companies export their products, so that surveillance devices manufactured in one country can sometimes be sold everywhere in the world.
Due to the nature of the industry, these companies often work in relative secrecy and it is sometimes hard to obtain reliable information about their activities, their clients, and their products. Documents leaked by whistleblowers, such as the Spy Files, a large collection of documents about the surveillance industry published from 2011 to 2014 by Wikileaks, are a precious source of information.
We think that understanding how the surveillance industry works, who sells the surveillance devices to the cops and what the devices look like will help us to oppose this surveillance. On this website, you will find a list of companies that sell physical surveillance devices to law enforcement agencies, a list of the trade shows and other events of the industry, a glossary of the specific terms of the surveillance industry, and a list of other resources on the subject.
Surveillance industry – list of companies
Note : outside of minor additions, this list was last updated in november 2020 – some informations may not be up-to-date.
This page aims to list the companies that sell physical surveillance devices designed to be hidden in spaces to law enforcement agencies. Each company in the list has its own page on which we try to gather as much information as possible about the company contact information, legal status, clients, and products.
Listed companies are sorted by their continent and country of origin. Next to each company name, you can see if the company markets audio, video, tracking, or other type of surveillance devices. If there is a known example of a device marketed by the company found after being used to surveil anti-authoritarian spaces or individuals doing subversive actions, the example is shown in purple color after the company name.
The following links allow to quickly access the different sections. The numbers between parentheses indicate how many companies are listed in each section.
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Africa : South Africa (2)
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Asia : China (1), Israel (2), Malaysia (1), Pakistan (1), Singapore (1), United Arab Emirates (1)
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Europe : Belgium (1), Czech Republic (2), Denmark (2), France (14), Germany (5), Ireland (1), Italy (15), Lithuania (2), Netherlands (1), Russia (1), Sweden (1), Switzerland (2), United Kingdom (17)
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North America : Canada (1), United States (6)
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Former companies (6)
An additional section lists companies that were deliberately not included in this list.
Africa
South Africa
Asia
China
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LongHope Police Equipment : video
Israel
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Pro4Tech : audio, video
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Tar Ideal Concepts (Avnon Group) : tracking
Malaysia
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Motec : audio, video, tracking
Pakistan
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Shahzad Gul Enterprises (Evernew Group) : audio, video, tracking
Singapore
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Ammertex : audio, video
United Arab Emirates
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Al Fahad Security Systems (Etimad Group, Al Fahad Smart System, Al Fahad Smart Systems, Al Fahad Group) : audio, video, tracking
Europe
Belgium
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Caminos : other
Czech Republic
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Forsolution : audio, video
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LEC : audio, video
Denmark
France
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Allwan Security : audio, video, device found in august 2020 in Loire-Atlantique, France
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Deveryware : tracking
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Exavision : video
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FGH Security : audio, video, tracking
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GSSI : audio, video
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GTS SERVICES : audio, other
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Ibou : tracking
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Opto Vision : audio, video
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Photospace : tracking
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Point Core : tracking
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Magnum Telecom (DELTA 6) : tracking
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Stancom (Stancom Ingénierie) : tracking
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SYANS : audio, video, tracking
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Track Cars : tracking
Germany
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Aaronia AG : tracking
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EBS-SYSTART (EBS Electronic, SYSTART) : tracking
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Elaman : audio, video, tracking, other
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euromicron (SIM Secure Information Management, SIM Asia, ATECS AG) : audio, video, tracking
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PKI Electronic Intelligence : audio, video, tracking
Ireland
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Acustek : audio
Italy
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Area : tracking
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Atet (Gruppo TRS) : audio, tracking, device found in february 2014 in Turin, Italy
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BEA : audio, tracking, other
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DEM Solutions : audio
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DSE (Digital Surveillance Equipment) : video, device found in june 2019 in Cuneo, Italy
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Elkron (Urmet) : video, device found in june 2014 in Genoa, Italy
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Endoacustica : audio, video, tracking
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GR SISTEMI : audio, video, tracking
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Innova : audio, tracking
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IPS : audio, video, tracking
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Lutech : audio, devices found in february 2020 in Pisa, Italy and Follonica, Italy
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Micro Team : audio, video, tracking
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Movia (SPMC) : audio, video, tracking
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Sio : audio, video
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Spektra Europe : audio, video, tracking
Lithuania
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Commesh UAB : audio, video
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Gedion : audio, video, tracking
Netherlands
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DigiVox : tracking
Russia
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SET-1 : audio, video
Sweden
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4Intelligence : audio, video
Switzerland
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Nagra (Audio Technology Switzerland) : audio
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Spectradome : audio, video, tracking
United Kingdom
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Apec Systems : audio, video
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Audiotel International (Simpatica Group, Security Research) : audio
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CellMetric : video, tracking
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Claresys : video
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David Horn Communications : audio, video
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Eskan : audio
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Hidden Technology : audio, video, tracking
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Komcept Solutions : audio
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MGT Europe : audio, video, tracking
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Ovation Systems : audio, video
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Providence ITF : audio, video, tracking
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Seven Technologies Group (Seven Technologies, Datong) : video, tracking
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Shield Security : audio, video, tracking
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Sonic Communications (Soncell International, Bowmer + Kirkland) : audio, video
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Sure : audio, video, tracking
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Terrafix : audio, tracking
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Timespace Technology : video, tracking
North America
Canada
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DYPLEX Communications : video
United States
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BrickHouse Security : video, tracking
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CovertTrack Group (GPS Intelligence) : tracking
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Covert Law Enforcement (Valorence) : audio, video, tracking
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LEA-AID (Law Enforcement Associates, Audio Intelligence Devices) : audio, video, tracking
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Presidio (Coleman Technologies) : tracking
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RECONYX : video, device found in september 2018 in Sarthe, France
Multinational companies
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Domo Tactical Communications (Cobham TCS, Spectronic Denmark A/S, Micromill Electronics) : audio, video, tracking
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Gamma Group : audio, video, tracking, other
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MetOcean Telematics : tracking
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Nautics Group : audio, tracking
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Qinetiq : tracking
Former companies
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Griff Comm : audio, video, tracking
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LJM Tech Support (Risk&Co Solutions, Risk&Co) : audio, video, tracking
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PAD Datentechnik : tracking
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S.E.G. : audio, video
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SPEI 2000 : audio, tracking
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Technologies & Organization for Intelligence (Toi) : audio, tracking
Companies that were not included in the list
Due to a lack of information
The following companies were not included in the list because, due to of a lack of information concerning their activities, we were not able to find a clear indication that they market physical surveillance devices designed to be hidden in spaces :
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Ascendant Research, british company. They market “state-of-the-art systems for covert penetration, reconnaissance and electronic camouflaging” to law enforcement agencies, governments and the military.
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Cats Whisker Technologies, british company. They market “technical surveillance equipment” to law enforcement agencies and governments and they are part of the Covert Technology Suppliers Forum.
“Hunting cameras” companies
The following companies were not included in the list because they market video surveillance devices primarily meant to be used by hunters, and not by law enforcement agencies :
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Boly, based in the United States, markets products as Bolyguard, has a subsidiary called Boly Media Communications, device found in september 2018 in Sarthe, France
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Piège photographique, french company
“Fleet management” companies
The following companies were not included in the list because they market tracking surveillance devices primarily meant to allow other companies to track their own vehicles, and not intended for law enforcement agencies :
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ATrack Technology, based in Taiwan
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Bofan, chinese company
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CalAmp, based in the United States, their subsidiaries include LoJack Equipment Ireland, LoJack Italia, and “Telematics Products & Systems, OEM and Network Products”
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Cybergraphy, chinese company
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Digital Communications Technologies, based in the United States
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eBon, based in the United States
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ERM Advanced Telematics, based in Israel
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Globalsat Worldcom, based in Taiwan
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Gosafe, chinese company
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GTC, based in Taiwan, doing business as GoPass
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HunterPro, based in Uruguay, formerly Hunter and Positron
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I.D. Systems, based in the United States, doing business as PowerFleet, their subsidiaries include Pointer Telocation and Cellocator
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Internacional Track de México, mexican company, doing business as Global Track
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Lantronix, based in the United States, acquired Falcom in 2019
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Sensitech, based in the United States, acquired FreightWatch International in 2012
Surveillance industry – Trade shows and other events
The surveillance industry is very much organized around national and international trade shows and other events taking place regularly around the world. This page aims to list the events where physical surveillance devices designed to be hidden in spaces are likely to be presented or discussed.
Some events offer conferences and trainings to governmental agencies and private companies. Trade shows allow the clients of the surveillance companies – governments, law enforcement and security agencies, armed forces – to meet the company members, discover their products and services, and sign contracts. The list of companies exhibiting at a trade show is usually published on the event website, so that it is often possible to check if a given company is going to attend a given trade show.
European Police Congress
Official website : european-police.eu
Description : International congress for law enforcement agencies and the security industry, organized in Berlin, Germany every year since 2003.
Eurosatory
Official website : eurosatory.com
Description : International trade show for the security and defence industry organized in Paris, France, since 1967. It is held every two years.
GPEC (General Police Equipment Exhibition and Conference)
Official website : gpec.de
Description : Trade show for law enforcement agencies organized in Germany since 2000.
IDEX
Official website : https://idexuae.ae
Description : International trade show and conference for the defence industry, organized in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates every two years.
Interpol World
Official website : interpol-world.com
Description : International trade show for law enforcement agencies and private security companies organized in Singapore.
Interpolitex
Official website : interpolitex.ru
Description : Trade show dedicated to the internal security of States organized every year in Moscow, Russia, by the russian government.
ISS World
Official website : issworldtraining.com
Description : International gatherings of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, offering conferences and trainings. They are divided in five regular events : ISS World Middle East, ISS World Europe, ISS World North America, ISS World Latin America and ISS World Asia.
LEA-DER
Official website : lea-der.org
Description : Event organized in Czech Republic every year since 2016. It offers trainings, conferences, workshops, and products exhibitions to law enforcement agencies. The 2019 edition specifically mentioned “covert video & audio surveillance” as one of the five topics of the event.
Milipol Asia-Pacific
Official website : milipolasiapacific.com
Description : International trade show dedicated to the internal security of States, organized in Singapore every two years since 2005.
Milipol Paris
Official website : en.milipol.com
Description : International trade show dedicated to the internal security of States, organized in Paris, France, since 1984. It is held every two years since 1991.
Milipol Qatar
Official website : milipolqatar.com
Description : Trade show dedicated to the internal security of States in the “Middle East”, organized in Doha, Qatar, every two years since 1996.
Mock Prison Riot
Official website : mockprisonriot.org
Description : Trade show for law enforcement agencies and the military, organized regularly in a former jail in Moundsville, United States.
NATIA National Conference
Official website : natia.org
Description : Annual gathering organized in the United States each summer by the National Technical Investigator’s Association (NATIA). It offers trainings, workshops and products exhibitions to law enforcement and intelligence agencies from the United States and elsewhere. They also hold smaller events called “Chapter Meetings” which are not made public.
Security and Policing
Official website : securityandpolicing.co.uk
Description : Trade show for british security and defence companies, organized by the british government in the United Kingdom every year.
ShieldAfrica
Official website : shieldafrica.com/en
Description : International trade show for the security and defence industry organized in african countries (usually in the Republic of Ivory Coast) since 2013. It was organized every year between 2013 and 2015, and is held every two years since 2015.
Surveillance industry – Glossary
This page aims to list the terms used in the surveillance industry. When a term is referenced on the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, a link to the corresponding Wikipedia article is given after the term definition.
CDMA2000 : third-generation (3G) cellular standard especially used in North America and South Korea, competing with UMTS / Wikipedia
COMINT (Communications Intelligence) : gathering of intelligence related to communications between people, sub-category of SIGINT / Wikipedia
DVR (Digital video recorder) : electronic device that records video in a digital format to a mass storage device, such as a disk drive, a SD memory card or a networked storage device / Wikipedia
ELINT (Electronic intelligence) : gathering of intelligence from electronic signals not directly used in communication, sub-category of SIGINT / Wikipedia
Geofencing : feature included in many tracking devices which allows the device to detect when it enters or exits specific pre-determined areas, and react accordingly – for example by sending an alarm to the spy / Wikipedia
GLONASS (GLObal NAvigation Satellite System) : satellite navigation system owned by Russia that provides geolocation information to receivers everywhere in the world, competing with GPS / Wikipedia
GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) : generic acronym for satellite navigation systems providing navigation information on a global scale, such as the GPS or GLONASS systems / Wikipedia
GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) : cellular standard used for data transmission in second-generation (2G) and third-generation (3G) cellular networks / Wikipedia
GPS (Global Positioning System) : satellite navigation system owned by the United States that provides geolocation information to receivers everywhere in the world, competing with GLONASS / Wikipedia
GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) : second-generation (2G) cellular standard used worldwide / Wikipedia
HF (High frequency) : range of radio frequencies between 3 Mhz and 30 Mhz / Wikipedia
Homeland security : precautions taken by the government of a country against terrorist attacks and other serious threats / Wikipedia
IMSI (International mobile subscriber identity) : number that uniquely identifies every device of a cellular network / Wikipedia
IMSI-catcher (International mobile subscriber identity-catcher) : surveillance device used for intercepting mobile phone traffic in an area around the device and obtain informations about mobile phones in this area / Wikipedia
LEA (Law enforcement agency) : government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws / Wikipedia
LI (Lawful interception) : process in which communications between organizations or private citizens are collected by a service provider, and provided to law enforcement agencies, provided that they are in possession of a court order or other legal authorization / Wikipedia
LTE (Long-Term Evolution) : fourth-generation (4G) cellular standard / Wikipedia
NLJD (Nonlinear junction detector) : counter-surveillance equipment able to detect the presence of almost any unshielded electronic device containing semiconductors, even through walls, and even if the device is unpowered. It works by illuminating a small region of space with high-frequency radio frequencies : some components of semiconductor electronics will react to these radio frequencies in a specific way, and this reaction will be detected by the nonlinear junction detector / Wikipedia
OEM (Original equipment manufacturer) : company that produces goods that may be marketed by another company under their own name / Wikipedia
PEC (Posta elettronica certificata) : special type of email that allows users to legally prove that a given email has been sent and received, used mainly in Italy for communications between enterprises and the public administration / Wikipedia (en), Wikipedia (it)
PMC (Private military company) : private company providing military or security services for financial gain / Wikipedia
PoE (Power over Ethernet) : standard that allows Ethernet cables to simultaneously transmit data and power using a single network cable, allowing for example physical surveillance devices to be powered with a network cable instead of being connected to a standard electrical system / Wikipedia
PSTN (Public switched telephone network) : historical network of landline phones, in opposition to mobile phone networks / Wikipedia
RF (Radio frequencies) : electromagnetic wave frequencies between 30 Hz and 300 Ghz, constituting the radio spectrum, used by humans for a large range of applications, from communicating informations to heating things in microwave ovens / Wikipedia
SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) : gathering of intelligence by the interception of signals, whether communications between people (COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication (ELINT) / Wikipedia
TSCM (Technical surveillance counter-measures) : technical measures put in place to oppose surveillance, such as using hardware devices to search for bugs, using secure software or concealing ones identity / Wikipedia
UHF (Ultra high frequency) : range of radio frequencies between 300 Mhz and 3 Ghz / Wikipedia
UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) : third-generation (3G) cellular standard especially used in Europe, Japan and China, competing with CDMA2000 / Wikipedia
VHF (Very high frequency) : range of radio frequencies between 30 Mhz and 300 Mhz / Wikipedia
Surveillance industry – other resources
This page aims to list resources about the surveillance industry that have been published by other people than us.
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BuggedPlanet.info is an online encyclopedia about private companies and governmental agencies active in the fields of SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) and COMINT (Communications Intelligence). Although it isn’t its main focus, it also contains information about organizations marketing physical surveillance devices.
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The Global Surveillance Industry is a report that provides an analysis of the surveillance industry, including its history, products, and customers. It was published in 2016 by Privacy International, a charity based in the United Kingdom.
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The Hacking Team emails are an online database of more than 1 million emails leaked from the italian company Hacking Team, which markets intrusion software to governments and law enforcement agencies worldwide. It was published in 2015 by Wikileaks.
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ICWATCH is an online database of resumes of people working in the intelligence community. It allows searching among more than 400.000 resumes depending on multiple criterions.
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The Spy Files are a large collection of documents about the surveillance industry published from 2011 to 2014 by Wikileaks.
Also:
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Surveillance Industry Index (SII) was an online database of surveillance companies. It allowed searching among more than 500 companies depending on their country of origin, the location of their offices, or the type of surveillance technology they market. The website isn’t available online anymore, alhough the raw data can still be downloaded here.
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Contact
We speak english and french. If you write to us in another language, we can try to find a way to translate.
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Articles
A camera and a microphone found on a bike in Bavaria (Germany)
Posted on 2022/12/02 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Source: https://aufstand.blackblogs.org/2022/11/28/bayern-kamera-und-mikro-vor-wohnung-gefunden
A camera and a microphone were found on a bike in Bavaria, Germany. They were hidden under the bike seat, inside a container resembling a tool kit. The device consisted of a main unit (~ 12 x 12 x 0.5 cm) connected to a camera (max 1 x 1 x 1 cm), a microphone, a battery (25 x 5 x 4 cm, Li-ion, 3.7 V, 60 Wh, 16.0 Ah), a modem (EM7565 Sierra Wireless), a SIM card (Telekom), a GSM antenna and a 4G antenna (Antenova SR4L002). The camera pointed outwards through a very small hole, directed at the entrance of the home under surveillance – it was impossible to identify it with the naked eye. A few minutes after the surveillance device was spotted and removed, the suspected spies came to retrieve their bike.
The case has been added to our list of surveillance devices, which can be downloaded here.
A microphone found in a flat in Rome (Italy)
Posted on 2022/11/20 by desoreillesetdesyeux
A microphone was found in a flat in Rome, Italy. It was hidden on the back of the kitchen oven. It was powered by the oven electrical supply, and was also equipped with a battery.
The case has been added to our list of surveillance devices, which can be downloaded here.
Below is a picture of the device:
Two GPS trackers found under a vehicle in Berlin (Germany)
Posted on 2022/08/17 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Source: de.indymedia.org/node/215986
Two GPS trackers were found under a vehicle in Berlin, Germany (the second one was found a few days after the first one was found and removed). They were attached with strong magnets in a hollow space between the plastic covering of the bumper and the body, precisely behind the left rear wheel. Each tracker consisted of two metal cases connected by a cable. The first one contained a battery pack, and the second one the tracker itself, including a smaller battery, two antennas, and a SIM card.
The pictures of the device show that a tracker of model NavKos T, marketed by the german company DESAG Telematic, was part of the device. This suggests that the device was supplied by the german company DESAG Telematic.
The case has been added to our list of surveillance devices, which can be downloaded here.
Here are pictures of the devices found:
Recent product catalogs for three surveillance companies: Gedion, Nautics Group and Sonic Communications
Posted on 2022/07/24 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Some days ago, transparency collective Distributed Denial of Secrets (DDoSecrets) published recent product catalogs for three companies marketing covert surveillance devices to law enforcement agencies. This is, as far as we know, the first public leak of such catalogs since the Spy Files – a large collection of documents leaked from 2011 to 2014 by Wikileaks.
The catalogs can be downloaded through a torrent file or magnet link on DDoSecrets website, or directly using the links below:
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Gedion 2021 catalog
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Nautics groups 2020 catalog and 2020 specifications
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Sonic Communications 2021 catalog
An audio surveillance device found in the Libertad anarchist library in Paris (France)
Posted on 2022/04/02 by desoreillesetdesyeux
An audio surveillance device was found in the Libertad anarchist library in Paris, France. The device was hidden inside the printer-copier of the library. It was composed of two microphones, an antenna, a transformer, a battery, a small box containing an electronic card, a 64 GB SD card and a SIM card from the cell phone provider Orange.
According to the communique which announced the discovery of the device, it was a surveillance device of model RB800 marketed by the italian company Innova. The product description of the RB800 device can be downloaded here.
The case has been added to our list of surveillance devices, which can be downloaded here.
Here are pictures of the device found:
A surveillance camera found outdoors in Sevreau (France)
Posted on 2022/03/21 by desoreillesetdesyeux
A surveillance camera was found at the entrance of the village, pointed towards the home of an environmental activist. The camera, barely emerging from the ground, was covered with brambles and grass. It was connected to a Pepwave router and to two cases containing high-tech lithium batteries labeled Accuwatt, hidden in a ditch, under a tarp and a camouflage net.
The case has been added to our list of surveillance devices, which can be downloaded here.
Here are pictures of the device found:
Update of the list of devices: 15 cases added (february 2022)
Posted on 2022/02/23 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on the use of hidden physical surveillance devices by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, we publish a list of found surveillance devices.
This update adds to the list fourteen cases of devices found in Ireland and Northern Ireland, targeting Irish republicans and ranging from 1999 to 2021 – as well as one case in China in 2015. The following cases have been added:
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A listening and tracking surveillance device found in a car in Northern Ireland in december 1999
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A listening device found in offices in Belfast, Northern Ireland in september 2004
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A listening device found in a house in Derry, Northern Ireland in june 2005
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A GPS tracker and a listening device found under a car in County Armagh, Northern Ireland in august 2008
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Derry, Northern Ireland in june 2012
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Two bluetooth listening devices and a tracking device found in a car in Northern Ireland in june 2013
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A tracking device found on a van in Craigavon, Northern Ireland in december 2013
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A GPS tracker and a listening device found on a car in Lurgan, Northern Ireland in june 2014
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A listening device and a tracking device found on a car in Cappagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland in september 2014
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A listening device found in a house in Belfast, Northern Ireland in may 2015
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Listening devices found in a studio in Beijing, China in october 2015
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A listening device found in a house in Belfast, Northern Ireland in february 2018
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A GPS tracker and a listening device found in a car in Ireland in march 2019
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A listening device found outside in Derry, Northern Ireland in february 2021
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Three surveillance cameras found outside in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland in may 2021
The new list can be downloaded here.
If you wish to contribute information, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
A GPS tracker and audio recording device found in a car in Leipzig (Germany)
Posted on 2021/11/27 by desoreillesetdesyeux
On November 18, 2021, surveillance technology was discovered in a friend’s car, probably belonging to a government agency. It is a larger device with a GPS tracker from the company “u-blox” and a smaller audio recording device. The devices were hidden behind a panel of the front ceiling light. They were connected by a power cable and drew their power from the supply line to the rear ceiling light. A Y-adapter specially adapted to the car model was apparently used for this purpose. The audio unit tapped into the hands-free system’s existing microphone, which was located behind a cover above the rearview mirror. It is not known if the hands-free unit still worked under these circumstances.
A GLONASS tracker and microphones found in a car in Genoa (Italy)
Posted on 2021/08/03 by desoreillesetdesyeux
A surveillance device was found recently in a car in Genoa (Italy). We relay below the article announcing the discovery of the device.
Update of the list of devices: 7 cases added (june 2021)
Posted on 2021/06/05 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on the use of hidden physical surveillance devices by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, we publish a list of found surveillance devices.
The list now includes an “inside electronic devices” category, which lists physical surveillance devices hidden inside electronic devices. In this update, the following cases have been added:
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A GPS tracker found under a car in the United States in 2005
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A listening device found in a flat in Donostia (Basque Country) in august 2007
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A tracking device found under a car in the Basque Country in september 2007
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Urrugne (Basque Country) in august 2011
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A tracking device found on a truck in the United States in 2014
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A surveillance device found inside a desktop phone in march 2018
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A surveillance device found inside a smartphone in Moscow (Russia) in december 2020
The new list can be downloaded here.
If you wish to contribute informations, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
Update of the list of devices: 11 cases added (may 2021)
Posted on 2021/05/17 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on the use of hidden physical surveillance devices by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, we publish a list of found surveillance devices.
In this update, 11 cases from 1988 to 2013 have been added to the list. Also, we now include a “methodology” section, which explains how the list is constructed. Documentation was added on:
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A tracking device found under a car in Berlin (Germany) in july 1988
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GPS trackers found under three cars in Boulder (United States) in july 2003
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A surveillance device found in a car in Rovereto (Italy) in november 2004
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A surveillance device found in a car in Bologna (Italy) in march 2005
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Bad Oldesloe (Germany) in march 2007
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A GPS tracker found in a car in Berlin (Germany) in may 2007
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A GPS tracker found under the car of Marius Mason in Cincinnati (United States) in february 2008. About a month after the device was found, Marius Mason was arrested and later sentenced to 22 years in prison for arson attacks (more information available at supportmariusmason.org).
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Levin (New Zealand) in april 2010
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A tracking device found under a car in Lübeck (Germany) in april 2013
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Leipzig (Germany) in may 2013
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Stuttgart (Germany) in june 2013
If you wish to contribute informations, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
Update of the list of devices (april 2021)
Posted on 2021/04/26 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on surveillance devices placed by cops, we publish a list of found surveillance devices. The list hadn’t been updated since november 2020. It is now up-to-date with recent findings of devices. Also, it is now available in two versions, one with pictures of the devices directly embedded in the list and one without pictures. The pictures are still available in a high resolution format in a separate archive file. Everything can be downloaded here.
Documentation was added on :
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A hidden surveillance camera found in Pisa (Italy), in may 2012
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Surveillance devices used to surveil Julian Assange, founder of the news organisation Wikileaks, in the equadorian embassy in London (United Kingdom) from 2015 to april 2018
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Outdoor surveillance cameras found in the “ZAD du Carnet” (France), in august 2020
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A GPS tracker and a microphone found in a car in Berlin (Germany) in november 2020
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A GPS tracker found under a car in Besançon (France) in march 2021
If you wish to contribute informations, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
A GPS tracker found under a car in Besançon (France)
Posted on 2021/04/22 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the original article in french at https://radiobip.fr/site/blog/2021/04/16/besancon-anarchiste-il-trouve-un-mouchard-sous-son-vehicule)
The story may sound funny, but the experience was, to say the least, indelicate. At the end of march, a man from Besançon was informed that a GPS tracker had been attached under his personal vehicle. A way to track his every move, announced by… the gendarmes themselves. Six months after being cleared in an investigation, he was contacted by the departmental section of Doubs in order to remove a device of which he knew nothing. A convinced anarchist with no previous criminal record, this witness feels that he was “targeted for his ideas.”
New page: overview of surveillance devices & Ears and Eyes newsletter
Posted on 2021/01/06 by desoreillesetdesyeux
New page: overview of surveillance devices
Cops and intelligence agencies sometimes use hidden physical surveillance devices – such as microphones, cameras, geolocation devices – to spy on individuals or groups doing subversive actions. The purpose of the new page is to give a quick overview of these devices by answering the following questions:
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When are they installed?
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Where are they hidden?
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How do they work?
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How to find them?
The new page can be accessed here: overview of surveillance devices.
Ears and Eyes newsletter
earsandeyes-subscribe@lists.riseup.net
Emails will be sent when a new device is discovered, or when one of our publications receives a major update. Everything sent to the newsletter will also be posted on the website.
Update of the list of companies (november 2020)
Posted on 2020/11/29 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on surveillance devices placed by cops, we publish a list of companies that sell physical surveillance devices designed to be hidden in spaces to law enforcement agencies. The list hadn’t been updated since 2019. We have updated it so that it contains more recent data. It can be accessed here.
Below, you will find a summary of the changes made to the list during this update.
Cameras found in the “ZAD du Carnet” in august (France)
Posted on 2020/11/14 by desoreillesetdesyeux
The information below comes from a recent article published by Reporterre, a left-wing environmentalist media. The article in question, whose “legalistic” approach disturbs us, can be read here: https://reporterre.net/Au-Carnet-des-cameras-cachees-et-illegales-pour-surveiller-des-ecologistes (in french).
In august 2020, four cameras were found near the “ZAD du Carnet”, a place of struggle against the creation of an industrial area, in Loire-Atlantique, in the west of France. The cameras were found on august 31, and “appear to have been installed right before a « weekend of resistance »” organized there on august 29 and 30.
The four cameras, hidden near an access gate to the area, were “camouflaged in a fake tree log and fake stones“. They “filmed continuously and were connected, via buried cables, to large batteries and modems, also concealed, allowing images to be sent directly to a remote station“.
A GPS tracker and a microphone found in a car in Berlin (Germany)
Posted on 2020/11/07 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2020/11/06/berlin-allemagne-sur-le-mur-est-a-laffut-un-petit-mouchard-retrouve-dans-une-voiture)
As mentioned in the article “Some concrete elements on the searches of Berlin and Athens for a criminal association case” (https://kontrapolis.info/586, in german), a GPS tracker and a listening device were found in a vehicle shortly before the searches.
Unfortunately, the cops prevented a quick publication, and this must now be made up for.
These devices were obviously installed by the federal criminal police (BKA) in order to retrieve information on the persons accused in the present “criminal association” proceedings. In general, it is very important not to keep such things to oneself, but to reveal these occult methods.
According to what is currently known, the GPS tracker was installed in august 2019 and the listening device intended for “internal surveillance of a vehicle” during or after september 2019.
Update of the list of devices (november 2020)
Posted on 2020/11/03 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on surveillance devices placed by cops, we publish a list of found surveillance devices. The list hadn’t been updated since october 2019. It is now up-to-date with recent findings of devices and can be downloaded here. Specifically, documentation was added on :
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A GPS tracker found on a car in Greece, in august 2019.
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A GPS tracker found on a motorbike in Athens, Greece, in october 2019.
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Microphones found in a building in Pisa, Italy, in january 2020.
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Microphones found in a house in Follonica, Italy, in february 2020.
As stated in our call for contributions, we try to focus on surveillance carried out by intelligence agencies and political police against individuals or groups doing subversive actions. If you wish to contribute informations, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
A few informations coming from internal documents of the italian national police
Posted on 2020/09/29 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Notes :
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This article was made from the reading of thousands of internal documents from the italian national police (Polizia di Stato) dated from 2012. These internal documents were leaked several years ago and are since then freely available on the web. They can for example be downloaded from the website “euleaks.is” (we don’t know who is behind this website, take precautions if you access it).
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These documents were very likely published by a person close to the russian secret services, and who is known for having already published forged documents. You can find more informations about this individual at this address : https://emma.best/2019/03/20/the-russian-contractor-who-infiltrated-anonymous. However, we think that the documents on which this article is based are genuine.
An audio surveillance device was hidden at the Centro Studi Libertari di Montesanto, in Naples, in 2012
A document shows that an audio surveillance device installed in the place was operated by italian cops, at least between february and june 2012. This document can be found in the documents archive at the location “pack001/interesting/richiesta documentazione ai P.M. di napoli del 5.10.2012.doc”. You can also read it here (in italian) : https://cloud.disroot.org/s/sg5m2Fo6HYnnGsP/download.
Use of tracking devices by cops to target Wet’suwet’en solidarity organizing (in so-called “Canada”)
Posted on 2020/09/16 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Below are extracts from an article published on the website North Shore Counter-Info. The complete article can be read here: https://north-shore.info/2020/08/20/details-of-police-surveillance-targeting-wetsuweten-solidarity-organizing.
North Shore Counter-Info has received legal documents that have not yet been made public containing details about recent investigations targeting anarchists in Southern Ontario who have been engaged with Wet’suwet’en solidarity organizing in 2019 and 2020. Many of these details confirm practices of surveillance that many suspect take place, but that aren’t usually taken seriously. This includes collaboration by big tech companies, tracking devices, and long periods of active surveillance.
We can confirm the following:
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The police sought and obtained a 492.1(1) warrant to track an individual’s location by attaching a tracing device to their vehicle.
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This warrant was granted within 24 hours
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This warrant would authorize the device to be in place for up to 60 days, or up to a year if it pertains to a criminal organization or terrorism (and recall that anarchists in Ontario are frequently accused of being both)
A few informations from a brochure on the french intelligence community
Posted on 2020/07/09 by desoreillesetdesyeux
A brochure about the french State intelligence services was recently published on the Internet. Below you will find a link to the article announcing its publication, as well as links to download the brochure, in english and french.
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Article announcing the publication of the brochure (in french) : https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2020/06/14/brochure-le-renseignement-francais
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The brochure in english : https://attaque.noblogs.org/files/2020/06/french_intelligence_en.pdf
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The brochure in french : https://attaque.noblogs.org/files/2020/06/french_intelligence_fr.pdf
This brochure provides some information about the subject we are interested in. It is composed of articles from the IntelligenceOnline website. It includes in particular (the page numbers match the english version of the brochure) :
Microphones found in Follonica (Italy)
Posted on 2020/02/21 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2020/02/18/follonica-italie-les-murs-aussi-ont-des-oreilles)
For about two years now, well-known spies have been listening without scruples to our daily life and privacy. We found four bugs, one in each room, at our home in Follonica. Each bug had a SIM chip and a memory card. The bugs were connected directly to the electrical system of the house, by means of a transformer and a battery.
We learned that the cops were supposed to put a camera in there as well, but they couldn’t put it in because it was difficult to hide it.
The State tries to get the idea that we are always being watched and controlled, as if they understood, through the keyhole, how we live, what we think, and what we desire. But they will never understand the complexity of our existences, maybe they would just manage to perceive what they already expect or what they want to hear, just by drawing their miserable interpretations from it.
What we feel can never be captured by cold transcripts in police files. Our passions will always remain incomprehensible to their ears.
Microphones found in buildings in Pise and Follonica (Italy)
Posted on 2020/02/10 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2020/02/10/pise-italie-voila-encore)
On january 31st we found microphones* in the Anarchist Garage in Pisa, as well as in the house of a comrade, in Follonica. The devices were connected to the electrical systems of both buildings and were used to listen to discussions over a period of several months. It should be noted that the spies entered the premises with a technological device that does a kind of ultrasound scan of the inside of the locks.
The cops began their investigations following an arson attack on a vivisection laboratory in Pisa, which was never reported in the press.
* the company that supplied the devices is Lutech Spa, based in Roncello (MB)
Examples of interactions between Italian justice and surveillance companies
Posted on 2019/12/12 by desoreillesetdesyeux
We received by email nine official documents published by italian courts or other italian agencies that illustrate the interactions between Italian justice and surveillance companies. In this article, we explain the content of these documents, and give links to the documents themselves (in italian).
On this website, we usually write about the use of physical surveillance devices (such as hidden microphones and cameras, GPS trackers) by cops in investigations. But in many judicial systems, long-term investigations also involve prosecutors and special judges. In Italy, as we will see, prosecutors often directly purchase services of environmental interceptions (intercettazioni ambientali), which means putting spying devices where you live.
New research focus : the surveillance industry
Posted on 2019/11/07 by desoreillesetdesyeux
When cops decide to spy on us using surveillance devices such as hidden microphones and cameras or GPS trackers, they need to get the devices from somewhere. It seems that they often buy these devices from private companies. The companies that manufacture and market those devices are part of what we call the surveillance industry.
We think that understanding how the surveillance industry works, who sells the surveillance devices to the cops and what the devices look like will help us to oppose this surveillance. So we have started a research work focused on this industry, and particularly on the companies that participate in it.
About two GPS trackers recently found in Greece
Posted on 2019/11/05 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(original, more detailed article in greek at https://omniatv.com/853454297)
Recently, two GPS trackers were found on the vehicles of politically active people in Greece. Both devices had a SIM card, a battery, and strong magnets on the outside so they could be attached to the metal surfaces of the vehicles.
The first device was found on a car in last august. Below are the pictures of the first device.
Update of the list of devices
Posted on 2019/10/06 by desoreillesetdesyeux
As part of our research work on surveillance devices placed by cops, we publish a list of examples of found surveillance devices. This list hadn’t beed updated since november 2018. It is now up-to-date with recent findings of devices and can be downloaded here. Specifically, documentation was added on :
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A device found in a squat in Grenoble, France, in august 2018.
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Cameras found outside during a gathering in Sarthe, France in september 2018.
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A microphone found in a car in Cremona, Italy, in february.
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Six microphones and a camera found in a house in Trento, Italy, in march.
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Microphones found in a squat in Turin, Italy, in march.
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A device found outside during a gathering in Cuneo, Italy, in june.
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A microphone and two GPS trackers found in a vehicle in Italy in august.
As stated in our call for contributions, we try to focus on surveillance carried out by intelligence agencies and political police against individuals or groups doing subversive actions. If you wish to contribute informations, documentation, translations, or you are simply interested in the subject, you can contact us.
Two GPS trackers and a microphone found in a vehicle (Italy)
Posted on 2019/09/10 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2019/08/27/italie-deux-balises-gps-et-un-micro-trouves-dans-un-vehicule/)
Hi, I’m Giampi, when I drink diesel I carry around Europe my friend and its blond and hairy beast. A few days ago, we got rid of two things that were sticked on us. A GPS tracker with a SIM card from an italian operator (with an accumulator made of five 3.6V lithium batteries, white and green colored, connected in a series) attached with a magnet to the rear bumper, on the right side. Another GPS tracker, with a microphone (with four batteries identical to the others) was placed in the air vents which are between the windscreen flap and the windscreen.
A surveillance device found during a gathering in Cuneo (Italy)
Posted on 2019/06/13 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2019/06/13/coni-italie-fureteurs/)
The voices which, since the gathering of saturday 8th of june in front of Cuneo’s jail, as part of the campaign against the 41bis, cheered up the prisoners, were not only heard by the attentive ears of the prisoners, but also by the one, never distracted, of the State.
By moving a few stones of a small wall along the path, on the closest spot to the 41bis section of the jail, and where we usually put the sound system during the gatherings, a watchful comrade noticed a strange package, wrapped up in a black garbage bag. Inside, we found a device capable of recording images and sound (it was made of a screen and a door for an SD card, a battery, a microphone and a camera hidden behind a rock where a hole had been made).
The ears of Pedrotta : microphones found in Turin (Italy)
Posted on 2019/03/15 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://attaque.noblogs.org/post/2019/03/14/turin-italie-les-oreilles-de-m-me-pedrotta/)
(original article in italian at https://www.autistici.org/macerie/?p=33477)
After having our ears burning for long, we found and fixed the problem. The big ears of the police and the prosecutor Pedrotta [who investigates comrades in Turin, with the operation « Scintilla »; NdAtt.] are those which, during two years and a half, secretely listened the voices of the everyday life and words exchanged in the kitchen of the flat on the fifth floor of the squatted house on 45, Corso Giulio Cesare. Here are the microphones that captured discussions that were then reproduced in the file of the latest investigation, to prove that the defendants knew each other, often talked together, were preoccupied by the creation by the italian State of a DNA database and the impossibility to refuse giving a DNA sample, that they discussed a text to publish or chatted about stuff.
We hope that after listening and sticking their nose into the lives of others for so long, Pedrotta had something caught in their throat or tripped over a step.
Posted on 2019/03/12 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Technical assistance for surveillance and shadowing – putting beacons, internal document of the french intelligence services, is a manual explaining how to put and operate localization beacons on vehicles in order to surveil movements. It was published in Tarnac, Magasin général, a book published in 2012 that relates the « Tarnac case » (in which people were placed under investigation, accused of sabotage of railways). It would date back to the middle of the 2000s, according to an article of the newspaper Médiapart that was published along with the book.
This document can be downloaded here :
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Translation in english : https://earsandeyes.noblogs.org/files/2019/03/Technical-assistance-for-surveillance-and-shadowing-putting-beacons.pdf (note that the inconsistent text formatting of the original version was deliberately kept in the translation)
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Original version in french : https://earsandeyes.noblogs.org/files/2019/03/Aide-technique-a-la-surveillance-et-filature-Le-balisage.pdf
The document first explains the ways of putting beacons on vehicles in different scenarios (vehicle location, possibility to move the vehicle somewhere else to place the beacon…). Then, it presents different type of beacons and how to use them.
Trente (Italy) : 6 microphones and a camera found
Posted on 2019/03/11 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(translated from the french translation at https://cracherdanslasoupe.noblogs.org/?p=4830)
(original article in italian at https://roundrobin.info/2019/03/trento-sei-microspie-e-una-telecamera-immagini-pesanti/)
Following the « Renata operation » which led to the arrest of seven comrades and about fifty police searches, mostly in Trente and Rovereto, but also in Rome, Naples and Cagliari, we decided to check our homes, looking for enemy ears.
Searching through outlet and switch cases, we found 6 acoustic devices, chips with microphones, batteries, sim card and memory card (the sim and memory card were there in each case but one).
Two of them were located in two different places of the living-room, the communal space of the house. Another was located in the corridor that goes from the entrance to the bedrooms and the rest of the house, the last three were found in the private bedrooms, one for each room.
A bug found in Cremona (Italy)
Posted on 2019/02/17 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(article first published in italian here : https://csakavarna.org/?p=4232)
One year after the last discovery of a GPS bug in the car belonging to comrades in Cremona, we just made another find. In the same car, we found a bug, connected to a Vodafone SIM card (protected by a PIN code), with the microphone placed in upholstery of the vehicle roof. The work, with great delicacy, was done inside the car and the bug wires were hidden in the isolation case. The device was connected to the car electrical system, so that the bug turned on when the car started.
We don’t know when this control toy was put in place. Maybe it was because it wasn’t nice, for the spies, to get caught the hands in the jar of jam, last year. It’s a shame that these hands aren’t dirty with jam, but with blood. Blood that comes from wars, control, repression, cages. We have only contempt for those who spy on the lives of others. Passion for freedom is stronger than any authority.
Below, pictures of the device (click on the pictures to see them bigger) :
Counter-surveillance techniques (Maßnahmen gegen Observation)
Posted on 2019/02/11 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Maßnahmen gegen Observation (Counter-surveillance techniques) is a booklet published in german in june 2011. It describes some surveillance techniques used by the States to surveil individuals and groups (especially in the context of Germany), and ways to oppose this surveillance.
This booklet can be downloaded here (in german) :
Among the chapters linked with our subject, which is the study of physical surveillance devices hidden by cops in the spaces we live in, we can point out :
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Peilsender (Trackers) page 30. This chapter describes two existing localisation techniques for surveillance devices placed on vehicles (using radio waves or GPS), as well as two type of trackers (the Quick-Pack placed outside the vehicles and the devices hidden inside).
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Wanzensuche (Looking for surveillance devices) page 51. About possible hiding places for surveillance devices inside houses and ways to find them.
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GPS-Peiler (GPS tracker) page 52. About ways of finding surveillance devices placed on vehicles.
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Peilsender finden (Find the trackers) page 60. This chapters describes again, more precisely, ways of locating surveillance devices placed on vehicles.
Within those chapters, we selected a few extracts that we found interesting. You will find below english translations of those extracts.
More precisions about the keylogger found in Italy
Posted on 2019/01/27 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(informations received by email)
In october 2018, an article was published on several websites about a keylogger surveillance software found in Italy on a computer, and installed by cops. This article can be read in multiple languages :
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(english) https://actforfree.nostate.net/?p=31644
Although this example of surveillance is rather outside our subject (we want to limit ourselves to studying physical surveillance devices, as mentionned in our call for contributions), we found interesting to talk about it anyway.
We received by email precisions concerning this surveillance software, which explain some things that were left unexplained by the article from october 2018. We summarized below the new informations. These informations should be treated with caution, considering that the surveillance software couldn’t be analyzed properly (the hard disk of the computer infected by the surveillance software was erased after the software was found).
Bug found in Grenoble (France) in august 2018 : testimony and pictures
Posted on 2019/01/16 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(informations received by email)
In august 2018, a surveillance device is found in the squat Awhanee in Grenoble (France), not long after the place was searched by the cops. This example was already present in our list of examples but with very little information.
A testimony of the people living in the squat about the search was published in august :
We received by email a new testimony concerning this surveillance device, as well as pictures of the device. We publish here the testimony and the pictures.
Three outdoor surveillance cameras found during a support day (France)
Posted on 2018/12/10 by desoreillesetdesyeux
(informations received by email)
Story
One of the two “BOLYGUARD MG983G” cameras found during the support day
September 2018, in a small countryside in Sarthe, west of France (300 inhabitants).
To answer the call to support financially and materially the struggle against Bure nuclear trash (in Bure, the french State wants to build a giant center to bury nuclear waste), we decide to organize a support day where we live. On the program: conference, exchange time on the current struggle situation, food and concerts.
On the event day, the first persons arrive early afternoon, by car, bike, or by foot from the village center. (It is important to note that the event place is at the end of a 250m pathway bordered by a field on one side, and a tree hedge on the other side).
Around 3 p.m., one of the participants who arrived by foot on the pathway tells us that there is an unidentified device on the ground in the grass. An organizer decides to come with her to check what it is. The device is brought back and analyzed. It is a remote surveillance camera of model BOLYGUARD MG983G.
Call for contributions : surveillance devices hidden by cops in the spaces we live in
Posted on 2018/11/27 by desoreillesetdesyeux
Note : this call for contributions is also available in czech, french, italian, russian, and spanish.
The States, according to their role of repression of individuals and groups doing subversive actions, put in place ways of keeping those individuals and groups under surveillance. It seems that some of this surveillance is done through the hiding of surveillance devices in the spaces we live in.
These devices take different forms : microphones, cameras, geolocation devices. Targeted spaces can be all the spaces we go through : buildings, vehicles, public space. These practices are sometimes legal, authorized by a judge for example, and sometimes not, done illegally by intelligence agencies.
We noticed the lack of informations available around us concerning this kind of surveillance. What is the real use of these devices by intelligence agencies? Which kind of devices are used? In which contexts? How efficiently? What can we do to oppose this kind of surveillance? Continue reading →