Hundreds of Police Agencies Distributing Spyware and Keylogger

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Hundreds of Police Agencies Distributing Spyware and Keylogger

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday October 1, 2014 @04:26AM from the you-can-trust-us dept.

realized sends this news from the EFF: For years, local law enforcement agencies around the country have told parents that installing ComputerCOP software is the "first step" in protecting their children online. ... As official as it looks,ComputerCOP is actually just spyware, generally bought in bulk from a New York company that appears to do nothing but market this software to local government agencies. The way ComputerCOP works is neither safe nor secure. It isn't particularly effective either, except for generating positive PR for the law enforcement agencies distributing it.

As security software goes, we observed a product with a keystroke-capturing function, also called a "keylogger," that could place a family's personal information at extreme risk by transmitting what a user types over the Internet to third-party servers without encryption. EFF conducted a security review of ComputerCOP while also following the paper trail of public records to see how widely the software has spread. Based on ComputerCOP's own marketing information, we identified approximately 245 agencies in more than 35 states, plus the U.S. Marshals, that have used public funds (often the proceeds from property seized during criminal investigations) to purchase and distribute ComputerCOP. One sheriff's department even bought a copy for every family in its county.

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who is doing the spying? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-01 04:32 · Score: 3, Interesting

this could go two ways - one, the computerCOP software enables the police to spy on people. two, the computerCOP software opens up so many vulnerabilities that malware authors swoop in and scoop up the data. I could see either being plausible, or both even. Any insights here, not just conjecture?
1. Re:who is doing the spying? by MickyTheIdiot · 2014-10-01 04:58 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I did not RTFA of course, but another possibility is to give the ability to dump kiddie porn on a target's computer to create more suspicion and give them leverage and a PR boost. I used to think the Police were above such things and that the "plant a gun" meme was rare, but as we have seen in St. Louis and making public records available that show the victim might not be a great guy... maybe this happens more than we think.
2. Re:who is doing the spying? by NoImNotNineVolt · 2014-10-01 06:07 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  I've had law enforcement officers plant "something" in my car during an anything-but-routine traffic stop. In the end, no arrests were made, and the law enforcement officers settled for merely assaulting one of my passengers.
  
  Disclaimer: The corruption of this municipal police force was documented by CBS News' program 60 Minutes in the year 2000, which is right around the time of the incident I described. They may not be representative of law enforcement officers elsewhere.
  
  --
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Re: Uhhhh by mrbill1234 · 2014-10-01 04:34 · Score: 5, Informative

Only for some
http://www.wired.com/2014/10/s...
PIGS by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-01 04:41 · Score: 2, Insightful

Fuck the po-lice
1. Re:PIGS by MickyTheIdiot · 2014-10-01 04:54 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Yeah, replying to a troll isn't good, but in a time when most sane people that the power of the police, the SOPs of the police, and the hiring practices of the police need a makeover it is yet another black eye. I support GOOD police officers, but it appears that the bad has penetrated every level of police procedure.
2. Re:PIGS by mrchaotica · 2014-10-01 05:12 · Score: 2
  
  [I]n a time when most sane people [believe] that the power of the police, the SOPs of the police, and the hiring practices of the police need a makeover it is yet another black eye
  Indeed: "fuck the police" is now something even middle-class white men say!
  
  --
  "[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz
Perfect example by whoever57 · 2014-10-01 04:52 · Score: 3, Insightful

If anyone ever wanted an example of why LEO agencies cannot be trusted, this is it.

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misleading by Charliemopps · 2014-10-01 04:54 · Score: 4, Insightful

This is a misleading story and summary.
I got the impression the police were distributing this as some kind of internet filter, and secretly using it to monitor your computer.
It's not.
The are advertising it for what it is. A keylogger... so you can spy on your kids.
It's a crappy piece of software, and the company that produced it made some disreputable marketing claims.
The police are not using it to spy on you.
I have a 6yr old. The way I monitor his internet activity is simple. The computers in the living room right next to the couch. I can see everything he's doing, any time hes on it. I have the password so he can't log on without me entering it for him. Every game he plays or site he visits I go checkout myself. Btw, Adventure Time Battle party is his favorite and it's actually pretty fun for adults to.
1. Re:misleading by Nemyst · 2014-10-01 05:00 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Except that's not what the summary's saying. TFS says that police agencies are distributing and/or promoting an insecure and not particularly useful piece of software to parents under the guise of "protecting their children". I'm sorry but the police's job isn't to be doing software advocacy, and it especially isn't to promote a specific piece of commercial software, let alone actually buying it for other people without them requesting it. That it's bad at its job and can compromise personal information is just icing on the cake.
2. Re:misleading by jrms · 2014-10-01 05:04 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Mod parent up for good parent...ing.
3. Re:misleading by SeaFox · 2014-10-01 06:59 · Score: 2
  
  This is a misleading story and summary.
  I got the impression the police were distributing this as some kind of internet filter, and secretly using it to monitor your computer.
  It's not.
  The are advertising it for what it is. A keylogger... so you can spy on your kids.
  If it's for parents to monitor children, why is the data being sent to a third-party server? It should be staying on the computer for parents to peruse later.
Who watches the watchmen? by kruach+aum · 2014-10-01 05:03 · Score: 3, Insightful

now we know: marketers. I wonder if Alan Moore's snake god already told him.
Parenting by Minupla · 2014-10-01 05:07 · Score: 4, Insightful

It comes down to knowing your kid.
I have a 6 yr old too. If she sees me looking at something on the computer, she'll come up, looking away and say "Daddy, is that kid appropriate?" before looking. I have no concerns that she'll break the rules, so I don't feel the need for any preventive controls. If I had a child with a different temperament I would react differently of course. For what its worth, my day job involves ensuring that people employed by my company are safe on the internet. Generally my 6 yr old is better behaved :)

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1. Re:Parenting by Minupla · 2014-10-01 08:08 · Score: 2
  
  Oh gods, I hope her behavior changes in 10 years! She'll be 16 then!
  
  --
  On the whole, I find that I prefer Slashdot posts to twitter ones because I don't get limited to 140 chars before
The Hypocrisy by FrodoOfTheShire · 2014-10-01 05:15 · Score: 5, Interesting

The FBI arrested the CEO of StealthGenie for providing software that can be used for stalking, and here you have a story where Police Agencies are providing stalking software for free.
Does anyone else find this hypocrisy hilarious?
1. Re:The Hypocrisy by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-01 06:17 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  Not at all. Because the article reads like the police have been duped by the company making this software as well. The company even faked a letter of endorsement from the U.S. Department of Treasury..."In investigating ComputerCOP, we also discovered misleading marketing material, including a letter of endorsement purportedly from the U.S. Department of Treasury, which has now issued a fraud alert over the document."
2. Re:The Hypocrisy by oxdas · 2014-10-01 07:10 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  While you might agree or disagree with the laws themselves, the government is not displaying hypocrisy in this instance. The CEO for StealthGenie was not arrested for providing software, but advertising software for an illegal purpose. Since it is legal for parents to spy on their minor children, had StealthGenie advertised their product only for that use, it would have been legal. While duct tape is perfectly legal, it is illegal for me to advertise duct tape as "The best tape for securing your kidnapping victims". This is the same situation as StealthGenie.
  A great example of this in the real world is water bongs. In my community, it is legal to make a bong and legal to sell them. So, every shop that does so advertises them for tabacco use. Now, the shop knows that 99%+ of their customers will use the bong for marijuana, but as long as they don't advertise that, they are fine.
Re:Uhhhh by davester666 · 2014-10-01 05:31 · Score: 2

only if you don't tell the person using the computer what it does....oh, wait...

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Re:It never did work right. by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-01 06:29 · Score: 2, Interesting

Your attempt to act "old school cool" has failed.
Re:quid pro quo? by Jumunquo · 2014-10-01 12:59 · Score: 2

There is. It's mentioned in the story:
"Since 2007, Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco’s office in New York, where ComputerCOP is based, has bought 43,000 copies of the software—a fact trumpeted in DeMarco’s reelection campaign materials. ComputerCOP’s parent company directly donated to DeMarco’s campaign at least nine times over the same period.
Indeed, ComputerCOP markets itself as the “perfect election and fundraising tool.” As part of the package, when a law enforcement agency buys a certain amount of copies, ComputerCOP will send out a camera crew to record an introduction video with the head of the department. The discs are also customized to prominently feature the head of the agency, who can count on a solid round of local press coverage about the giveaway."