NSA can hack WiFi devices from eight miles away

The NSA may have the ability to intercept data from around the world, but we now know that it has some impressive (and intimidating) equipment for snooping on nearby targets. Security guru Jacob Appelbaum told those at the Chaos Communications Congress this weekend that the NSA's big box of tools includes Nightstand, a custom device that can compromise WiFi networks for the sake of inserting spy software. The Linux-powered device can exploit Windows systems from up to eight miles away; it's unlikely that you'll catch agents wardriving in the parking lot. Nightstand may not see significant use today given that it dates back to 2008, but its existence suggests that the NSA also has newer, more advanced WiFi surveillance gear at its disposal.

http://www.engadget.com/2013/12/30/nsa-can-hack-wifi-devices-from-eight-miles-away/

How The NSA Hacks Your iPhone with DROPOUT JEEP

Following up on the latest stunning revelations released yesterday by German Spiegel which exposed the spy agency's 50 page catalog of "backdoor penetration techniques", today during a speech given by Jacob Applebaum (@ioerror) at the 30th Chaos Communication Congress, a new bombshell emerged: specifically the complete and detailed description of how the NSA bugs, remotely, your iPhone. 

The way the NSA accomplishes this is using software known as Dropout Jeep, which it describes as follows: "DROPOUT JEEP is a software implant for the Apple iPhone that utilizes modular mission applications to provide specific SIGINT functionality. 

This functionality includes the ability to remotely push/pull files from the device. SMS retrieval, contact list retrieval, voicemail, geolocation, hot mic, camera capture, cell tower location, etc. Command, control and data exfiltration can occur over SMS messaging or a GPRS data connection. All communications with the implant will be covert and encrypted."

The flowchart of how the NSA makes your iPhone its iPhone is presented below:

- NSA ROC operator
- Load specified module
- Send data request
- iPhone accepts request
- Retrieves required SIGINT data
- Encrypt and send exfil data
- Rinse repeat

Everyone knows that their iPhone is nothing but a gateway for the NSA to peruse everyone's "private" data at will. Which, incidentally, is not news, and was revealed when we showed how the "NSA Mocks Apple's "Zombie" Customers; Asks "Your Target Is Using A BlackBerry? Now What?"

How ironic would it be if Blackberry, left for dead by virtually everyone, began marketing its products as the only smartphone that does not allow the NSA access to one's data (and did so accordingly). Since pretty much everything else it has tried has failed, we don't see the downside to this hail mary attempt to strike back at Big Brother and maybe make some money, by doing the right thing for once.

Read more: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-12-30/how-nsa-hacks-your-iphone-presenting-dropout-jeep

Google 'heatmap' reveals New York, Rome and Barcelona as the most photographed places on Earth

From the Empire State Building to the Blue Mosque, plenty of people take photographs of iconic architecture when on holiday.

And now Google Maps’ Panoramio ‘heat map’ of the world allows people to see the most photographed travel destinations.

Three of the five most photographed places on the planet are in the EU, according to the popular service, which lets people tag photos of landmarks and scenery and upload them to Google maps.
According to the website’s heat map, New York City is the most photographed place in the world, or at least more images of New York landmarks and scenes have been uploaded via Panoramio than any other city.

Rome, Barcelona, Paris and Istanbul make up the rest of the top five most photographed destinations, suggesting the service is more popular in some areas of the world than others.

The map shows the most popular photographic locations in yellow, before fading to orange, pink and then purple for slightly less photographed places, making it easy to pick out popular holiday spots, cities and wonders of the world.

London was, unsurprisingly, the most snapped location in the UK and Ireland, followed by Dublin, Stonehenge, Brighton and Bath.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2530004/Google-heatmap-reveals-New-York-Rome-Barcelona-photographed-places-Earth.html#ixzz2ozJCvc1e