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The CIA Built a Fake Software Update System To Spy On Intel Partners (theverge.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the sensitive-information dept.

Documents published by Wikileaks reveal a secret project to siphon out data through its technical liaison service, dating back to 2009. The Verge reports: The program, called ExpressLane, is designed to be deployed alongside a biometric collection system that the CIA provides to partner agencies. In theory, those partners are agreeing to provide the CIA with access to specific biometric data -- but on the off-chance those partners are holding out on them, ExpressLane gives the agency a way to take it without anyone knowing. ExpressLane masquerades as a software update, delivered in-person by CIA technicians -- but the documents make clear that the program itself will remain unchanged. Instead, the program siphons the system's data to a thumb drive, where agents can examine it to see if there's anything the partner system is holding back. If the partners refuse the phony update, there's a hidden kill-switch that lets agents shut down the entire system after a set period of time, requiring an in-person visit to restore the system.

21 of 110 comments (clear)

  1. Lol by Jesus+H+Rolle · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Guess who's going to prison... nobody!

    1. Re:Lol by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2

      They were stupid enough to get caught spying on people they rely on to cooperate with them. They just made their own jobs a lot harder.

      Not so smart after all.

  2. What would you expect in Putin's Russia? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    This would never happen in the US of A!

    1. Re:What would you expect in Putin's Russia? by BlueStrat · · Score: 3

      Allegedly it's intelligence and counter-terrorism. But more and more it feels like counter-intelligence and terrorism.

      It's basic human nature at work. You give a group of people (government) power over another group (citizens), and it will be abused. The more power the first group has over the second, the more and the harsher the abuse. It's the reason in a nutshell why the US Constitution was written to be almost entirely about restricting the Federal government to narrowly-defined & limited powers and duties.

      Remember boys and girls, since nation-states became a thing, more citizens have died at the hands of their own government than have died in all the wars by a huge margin. Be careful what you wish for...you just may get it!

      Strat

      --
      Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
  3. Oh, Intelligence Partners? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Intel... PCI Express Lanes... why's the CIA spying on Intel and its partners?

    1. Re:Oh, Intelligence Partners? by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 2, Insightful

      why's the CIA spying on Intel and its partners?

      It's usually just plain called "Industrial Espionage".

      The CIA will claim it is necessary to ensure US military technology superiority against any potential threats.

      Victims of Industrial Espionage see it differently . . . the whole point is to "help out" US tech companies compete against foreign folks. To return the favor, the US tech companies "help out" the CIA/NSA if they need any back doors in their products.

      --
      Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
    2. Re:Oh, Intelligence Partners? by msauve · · Score: 5, Informative

      "why's the CIA spying on Intel and its partners?"

      So they can use Intel's Management Engine to spy on the rest of us.

      --
      "National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
  4. Why are our intel secrets being leaked like this? by execthis · · Score: 3, Interesting

    These leaks are really alarming. Why has this been happening? Who is accountable for it? Did this occur under Obama's watch (or failure thereof)?

  5. Re:Thanks Obama. by meerling · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Pretty much all I've seen is trumpets blaming everything on either obama or hillary, whether it happened after obama was out of office, during his 2 terms, or things that happened before for that matter. They've really got some serious issues, but I don't think even freud could help them!

  6. Is this news? by jandersen · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Wouldn't it be more surprising to hear that CIA genuinely didn't spy on everybody and never did things they weren't supposed to? They are a spy agency - it is their job.

    1. Re:Is this news? by AmiMoJo · · Score: 2

      True, but Intel are probably somewhat bummed that people have lost trust in them because apparently they can't secure their updates against hacking. If the CIA can do it, we should probably assume that they have been pwned by the FSB, North Korea and some 14 year old kid.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    2. Re:Is this news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      "Spying on everybody and doing things they aren't supposed to" is not their job, the same way that "shooting everybody and doing things they aren't supposed to" is not the army's job. The CIA is an intelligence agency - that naturally involves plenty of spying, but two things they specifically should not be doing are: "spying on everybody" and "things they aren't supposed to".

  7. Re: Why are our intel secrets being leaked like th by ewanm89 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yes! These damning leaks need to stop, how can we commit abuses against our own citizens otherwise. Don't worry, I'm sure the CIA only used this on foreign Intel partners in this case. We are already trying to work out who is responsible for leaking the document do we can charge them with espionage and treason.

  8. Oh! *intelligence* partners. by ross1160 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I was wondering why the CIA were involved in domestic industrial espionage

    1. Re:Oh! *intelligence* partners. by campuscodi · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Nothing in the US makes sense anymore

  9. Re:Why are our intel secrets being leaked like thi by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 2

    Wait, when you say "intel secrets" do you mean "intel secrets" or "Intel secrets"? I'm confused.

    --
    #DeleteFacebook
  10. Re:Thanks Obama. by El+Cubano · · Score: 2

    Pretty much all I've seen is trumpets blaming everything on either obama or hillary, whether it happened after obama was out of office, during his 2 terms, or things that happened before for that matter. They've really got some serious issues, but I don't think even freud could help them!

    Well, it is par for the course. Recall that the start of the Obama was an endless chorus of "it's Bush's fault" continuing until well after the 2012 election. That did not happen so much during the Bush presidency, but I suspect that is because September 11 happened so soon after he took office and at that point everyone in the country united under a common cause. Even after the unity dissolved, the government stayed focused on the "Global War on Terror" until well into the Obama presidency. If not for September 11, I am sure we would have heard lots more "it's [Bill] Clinton's fault." If you remember, Bush got elected during the dot-com meltdown, so there was plenty of fodder there for the spin doctors to try to pin on [Bill] Clinton.

    My opinion on this with respect to Trump is the same as it was with respect to Obama: you can"t run on "the last guy made a total mess and I am going to clean up" and then blame every problem you encounter on the last guy. As the new leader you get to suck it up, take the lumps, and solve the problem. If you don"t want clean up duty, then don't run for office in the first place.

  11. I am not shocked by cpbright · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I am not shocked. Trusting the government is like trusting the scorpion on your back while swimming across the river.

  12. Re:Thanks Obama. by Big+Hairy+Ian · · Score: 2

    Sorry but who's blaming trump over this? All he ever does with the CIA is bitch about them and then ignore or worse discvlose the intel they've given him.

    --

    Build a Man a Fire, and He'll Be Warm for a Day. Set a Man on Fire, and He'll Be Warm for the Rest of His Life.

  13. Oh that depends on the details by DeplorableCodeMonkey · · Score: 2

    Let's say that that partner agency is the FBI and the FBI takes this to mean that the CIA was illegally grabbing domestic data in direct violation of laws governing "US Persons Data" and the FBI's own guidelines (that were referenced in the memorandum of understanding). You better bet that someone in their leadership is at least raising the issue of prosecuting the CIA folks responsible, if for no other reason than "we're the FBI and you don't fucking spy on the FBI without consequences."

  14. Re: Thanks Obama. by KGIII · · Score: 2

    Trump got more fat women out walking, in just six months, than Michelle Obama managed in eight whole years.

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."