Slashdot Mirror
FBI Remotely Installs Spyware to Trace Bomb Threat
cnet-declan writes "There have been rumors for years about the FBI remotely installing spyware via e-mail or by exploiting an operating system vulnerability from afar — and now there's confirmation. Last month, the FBI obtained a federal court order to remotely install spyware called CIPAV (Computer and Internet Protocol Address Verifier) to find out who was behind a MySpace account linked to bomb threats sent to a high school near Olympia, Wash. News.com has posted a PDF of the FBI affidavit, which makes for interesting reading, and a summary of the CIPAV results that the FBI submitted to a magistrate judge. It seems as though CIPAV was installed via e-mail, as an article back in 2004 hinted was the case. In addition to reporting the computer's IP address, MAC address, and registry information, it also gave the FBI updates on which IP addresses the user(s) visited. But how did the FBI get the spyware activated and past anti-virus defenses? Two obvious ways are for the Feds to find and exploit their own operating system backdoors, or to compromise security vendors..."
From: spyware@fbi.gov
Subject: Click here for free movies!
Attachment: not_spyware.exe
Hello! You have been selected to receive free movies at no cost to you! All you have to do is install the attached program to start downloading all the latest Hollywood hits free of charge!
They think this guy really did it! I fooled 'em good!
How much is your data worth? Back it up now.
s/pay/blackmail
There, fixed that for you.
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
implies that EVERY Windows OS can be remotely exploited.
Who needs the FBI for this? Microsoft have been doing this all by themselves for years...
If your version of file can't tell the difference between an MS-DOS executable and a Windows PE binary then you might want to consider upgrading, as it's almost certainly a good 15 years out of date.
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
[2] Then they came for the end-of-sentence punctuation Nazis, and I did not care because I punctuate my sentences.
[3] Then they came for tense agreement Nazis, and I did not care because I know that 'do not need privacy' (even abbreviated as don't) is present tense while 'did not care' is past tense.
Then I realized that it matters not, because if someone can't read, they aren't going to care about net access records regardless of the privacy issues.
"Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
From the summary:
A MySpace account linked to bomb threats sent to a high school.
Chances of this system being secure, updated, well-managed? 0
Chances of this system being a Gateway laptop that takes 10 minutes to boot, loads 5 IM apps on startup, has 4 different IE toolbars, and constantly warns that the Norton Antivirus subscription lapsed 16 months ago? Our survey says yes!
My facts?
I am the one who broke the forensic yellow ID on color printers and copiers over the internet 6 years before the EFF.
I am the one who broke the RFID spy transmitter chips proven to be federally madated in all us car tires back in 2001 here on slashdot and in great detail, and finally 4 or 5 years later everyone finally came around to the revelation.
It seems, just as with mechanisms of Majic lantern and the otehr two us gov branches offerings, I am 6 years ahead of slashdot.
go to hell all of you federal shill and your federal shill mod accounts that mod everything down
(my car tire post was modded to -1 no less than 6 occasions by federal gov employees)
my parent post is no exception
communication is done by toggling uncached ram banks.
I don't know why i bother trying to help anyone here anymore.
(by the way i have had 10 other shocking +5 interesting anon posts, of monumental groundbreaking nature here, but listing them for you is too uncomfortable to me)
shame on the moderators that modded my infomative 100% FACTUAL and unique post down without proving anything wrong in it.
no wonder none of my peers bother even hanging around here anymore. I notice EVERY post of the first 100 posts avoided even using the phrase "Magic Lantern". Its quite revealing as to the intelelct and education in this field concerning the present type of slashdot reader.
clueless... all of you.. and you down mod the few precious people that can save slashdot.