Tangled webs of corporate spying uncovered
The New York Times has been picking apart a web of intrigue, deception and industrial espionage in the French capital.
Journalist David Jolly reported from Paris that what began as a Tour de France doping investigation in 2006 has now exploded into a labyrinthine trawl through the less scrupulous side of Gallic big business activities.
Three years ago top American cyclist Floyd Landis was found guilty of doping and was disqualified from the Tour de France and international cycling. As part of the doping investigation a computer at the drug testing lab was discovered to have been infected by a 'Trojan horse' virus. A Trojan horse is a tool that can be used to spy on the contents of a computer and steal the information from it.
The French Interior Ministry cybercrime unit got involved and the discovered a trail leading to Alain Quiros, a French national living in Morocco. His computer turned out to be an Aladdin's cave of information apparently stolen from top ranking business people's computer systems. He in turn fingered a former French intelligence agent Thierry Lorho, the head of Paris based Kargus Consultants. Evidence showed that the intelligence gathering attacks had been carried out against, not just the drug testing lab, but also lawyers, aerospace companies and even charities such as Greenpeace.
Mr. Lorho claimed that he had collected data on Greenpeace on behalf of Électricité de France, which had paid him for “strategic intelligence” on anti-nuclear campaigners. E.D.F. who are now moving into the UK energy market in a big way denied any knowledge of the cyber-theft by Kargus Consultants.
The Greenpeace campaign director at the time of the alleged spying incidents said the case showed “a systematic policy of spying by E.D.F.”
David Jolly goes on to say that spying by large corporations on their perceived enemies is by no means a recent phenomenon. He reminds his readers that in the 1960s General Motors hired private detectives to dig up dirt on Ralph Nader, the consumer activist who would later run for president of the USA.
Jolly also looks at German corporations such as Deutsche Telekom, Deutsche Bank and Deutsche Bahn, all of whom have been caught "overstepping the line regarding surveillance of critics and their own employees".
Read David Jolly's article on corporate theft in France
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Technical Surveillance Counter Measures (TSCM)
QCC Interscan has been providing world class TSCM (bug sweeping) services to UK and Global clients since 1997.
Protecting your business from covert surveillance threats makes economic sense. We conduct professional and effective counter surveillance assignments to keep vour valuable information safe from prying eyes.
TSCM, also known as bug sweeping or counter surveillance, is the process of electronically and physically inspecting offices, buildings, vehicles, telephone systems and cabling for the presence of eavesdropping devices.
Read more...High Net Worth Individuals
QCC has particular experience dealing with the surveillance and privacy concerns of high level company executives, celebrities and high net worth individuals. Our specialist services include TSCM (bug sweeping) services, covering residential sites and executive vehicles. We also have extensive knowledge in performing security inspections and review services for ocean going yachts, private planes, and executive motor vehicles. QCC can also supply a range of products to further secure important individuals.
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As part of our security inspection service for high profile company executives and high net worth individuals, we offer an extended security inspection service for executive vehicles. This includes all types of yachts, executive cars, limousines and private executive jets.
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Your report can be used to specify the installation of necessary security architecture to protect premises and assets.
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Tiger Testing Services
Tiger Testing is a special type of vulnerability test that originated in the United States Air Force who use it to test air base defences. The personnel who perform such testing are referred to as the Tiger Team.
Commercial Tiger Testing
Commercial Tiger Tests are beneficial to companies and organisations to highlight true physical, procedural or technical vulnerability and are especially useful in the maintenance of particularly valuable assets.
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We maintain the original idea of the Tiger Test but apply this idea specifically to ‘Information and Assets’. Once a Client has specified which information or assets are ‘Target Assets’ (TAs), we use whatever non-violent means that would be reasonably available to a covert agent to try and acquire that Target Asset. Our experts backgrounds means that they are particularly well suited to perform specialist Tiger Testing.
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Read more...GSM Telephone Evaluation
QCC Interscan has a dedicated telephone forensics unit offering an exclusive service to clients who are worried that their personal mobile telephones are being secretly monitored.
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High profile sports organisations
Sport is big business and high profile organisations and venues can be as much a genuine target for information thieves as any major multi-national corporation. Knowledge of the discussions that take place in a premier division football club's boardroom could be used by gamblers, conmen, newspapers, agents and rival clubs to make fortunes.
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