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Security Firm Kaspersky, Which Has Been Accused by US of Working With Russian Spies, Helped Catch an Alleged NSA Data Thief
An anonymous reader shares a report: The 2016 arrest of a former National Security Agency contractor charged with a massive theft of classified data began with an unlikely source: a tip from a Russian cybersecurity firm that the U.S. government has called a threat to the country. Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab turned Harold T. Martin III in to the NSA after receiving strange Twitter messages in 2016 from an account linked to him, according to two people with knowledge of the investigation. They spoke with POLITICO on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to discuss the case.
The company's role in exposing Martin is a remarkable twist in an increasingly bizarre case that is believed to be the largest breach of classified material in U.S. history. It indicates that the government's own internal monitoring systems and investigators had little to do with catching Martin, who prosecutors say took home an estimated 50 terabytes of data from the NSA and other government offices over a two-decade period, including some of the NSA's most sophisticated and sensitive hacking tools. The revelation also introduces an ironic turn in the negative narrative the U.S. government has woven about the Russian company in recent years.
The company's role in exposing Martin is a remarkable twist in an increasingly bizarre case that is believed to be the largest breach of classified material in U.S. history. It indicates that the government's own internal monitoring systems and investigators had little to do with catching Martin, who prosecutors say took home an estimated 50 terabytes of data from the NSA and other government offices over a two-decade period, including some of the NSA's most sophisticated and sensitive hacking tools. The revelation also introduces an ironic turn in the negative narrative the U.S. government has woven about the Russian company in recent years.
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Who actually believes the accusations against Kaspersky?
Security Firm Kaspersky, Which Has Been Accused by US of Working With Russian Spies, Helped Catch an Alleged NSA Data Thief
Security Firm Kaspersky, Which Has Been Accused by US of Working With Russian Spies with no evidence furnished thus far, Helped Catch an Alleged NSA Data Thief
Kaspersky found who was behind the Twitter handle by using the highly specialized tool ...Google.
He used the same HAL9999999 handle when posting to a dating site.
Protip to eleeet spy teefs: Don't do stuff like that.
Ever dream you could fly? Get up from the Flight Sim. I Fly
Pedophile coaches can make some kids better players. Does that mean they get a pass if they do?
Maybe you should write a novel about your long running imaginary affair with this imaginary non -evidence - salut - cheers. Im waiting for the first chapter to spy on you desperately pitching every editor you can find on the street
If a criminal turns in another criminal, it doesn't magically make the criminal not a criminal anymore.
Same applies here to Kapersky. In fact, I'd go as far to say, it's a PR stunt to try to regain favor, an attempt to convince others they're not in bed with the FSB. Not a chance. If anyone falls for this, you deserve Russian crafted malware.
Ivan, is that you?
Nobody has claimed Kaspersky was a willing or even witting participant in the event, only that they were a participant. As such, it's fully within the rights of the US government to deem their software on US government systems to be a threat and to advise employees to not use it.
On the other hand, what better way to sow seeds of self-doubt than to sacrifice a pawn?
There are a couple reasons to trust them but far more numerous and more compelling reasons to distrust them.
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
lets see....what has my hacker archive really got ..ohhhh
Released to the public for consumption and deliberation.
It is common for one country to reveal useful info to its enemy -- in exchange for other info. We don't know what the FSB or Kaspersky was given in return for them outing Martin. see Chicken Feed:
https://www.spymuseum.org/education-programs/news-books-briefings/language-of-espionage/
90% truth, 10% lies.
That is how misinformation works.
How many Russian companies tell the Russian govt No and that's the end? Er .... none. The "govt"/Putin gets what he wants or people are killed.
Whenever US companies tell the US govt no, it is headlines.
They just exposed the NSA's strategy for establishing plausible deniability when leaking data to private businesses.
Every once in a while, declare peace. It confuses the hell out of your enemies.
Kaspersky is probably the only company who refuses to look the other way at NSA / CIA born malware and viruses.
If you don't play nice with the spooky types, they make life hell on you in return.
Surely, stuff like this can't happen if we have backdoors only for the good guys!
Those who do not learn from commit history are doomed to regress it.
that the archive didn't turn up somewhere online. Would be a treasure trove of details on how to make computer systems secure from government hacking.
He deliberately used HAL9999999 to frame another guy. Cunning!
TFA says Kaspersky's tip led to the arrest in 2016 of a security contractor who stole massive amounts of data from the NSA. Their reward was that in 2017, Donald Trump signed legislation banning Kaspersky on government computers, and prohibiting government institutions from buying or installing it on "computers and other devices".
It looks an awful lot like Kaspersky proved in 2016 they were not a tool of the Russian government. Their reward was that less than a year later, Putin reached out through his asset in the White House to punish them for failing to bend over and spread for him.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.
Since Kaspersky is untrusted, how can they prove it wasn't the antivirus code that download terabytes of crap from the NSA over a period of years?
Most people that fear monger about Russia have their reason: it's the money they get from the British military intelligence. I hope you did get some too, AC.
Just mostly Dems still butt hurt that Trump is President.
Boy do I feel awkward. I have been accessing the NSA data bases to do light credit checks of folks that use debit cards. I just thought it was ok, what with cell tower owners selling location data. So I just figure that any data collected is accessible.