Category Archives: Espionage

NSO Group points finger at state clients in WhatsApp spying case

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In court filing, Israeli spyware company says it does not operate technology it provides

An Israeli spyware company that has been accused by WhatsApp of hacking 1,400 of its users, including journalists, human rights activists, and diplomatic officials, has blamed its government clients for the alleged abuses, according to court documents.

NSO Group – whose technology is reported to have been used against dozens of targets including Pakistani intelligence officials, Indian journalists and exiled Rwandan political activists – also claimed in legal documents that the lawsuit brought against the company by WhatsApp threatened to infringe on its clients’ “national security and foreign policy concerns”.

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Revealed: Saudis suspected of phone spying campaign in US

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Exclusive: Whistleblower’s data suggests millions of tracking requests sent over four-month period

Saudi Arabia appears to be exploiting weaknesses in the global mobile telecoms network to track its citizens as they travel around the US, according to a whistleblower who has shown the Guardian millions of alleged secret tracking requests.

Data revealed by the whistleblower, who is seeking to expose vulnerabilities in a global messaging system called SS7, appears to suggest a systematic spying campaign by the kingdom, according to experts.

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UK government discloses existence of body monitoring foreign spies

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Cross-Whitehall team set up in 2017 in response to growing threat of foreign interference

The UK government has established a cross-Whitehall body to monitor the threat from foreign spies, it has been revealed.

The Joint State Threats Assessments Team (JSTAT) was set up in 2017 in response to the growing threat of espionage and subversion by foreign powers.

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UK ministers will no longer claim ‘no successful examples’ of Russian interference

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Change of official line is first admission that Kremlin may have distorted UK elections

Ministers have been told they can no longer say there have been “no successful examples” of Russian disinformation affecting UK elections, after the apparent hacking of an NHS dossier seized on by Labour during the last campaign.

The dropping of the old line is the first official admission of the impact of Kremlin efforts to distort Britain’s political processes, and comes after three years of the government’s refusal to engage publicly with the threat.

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Woman in Russian ‘sex spy’ scandal fights deportation from Canada

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Ottawa judge to hear case of Elena Crenna, who denies allegations she shared classified information with Russian officials

A woman at the centre of a three-decades-old Russian “sex spy” scandal is fighting her deportation from Canada, denying allegations she ever shared classified information with Russian officials.

An Ottawa judge was due on Wednesday to hear the case of Elena Crenna, a Russian American woman who married the former Canadian civil servant David Crenna.

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CIA controlled global encryption company for decades, says report

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Swiss government orders inquiry after revelations Crypto AG was owned and operated by US and German intelligence

The Swiss government has ordered an inquiry into a global encryption company based in Zug following revelations it was owned and controlled for decades by US and German intelligence.

Related: Joe Biden leaves New Hampshire early as Democrats vote in primary – live

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Saudi Arabia ‘planned to spy on Khashoggi’s fiancee in UK’

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Exclusive: US agencies believed kingdom intended to monitor Hatice Cengiz after journalist killed

US intelligence authorities urged British counterparts to keep a close eye on Hatice Cengiz, the fiancee of the murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, after they became aware of a plan by Saudi Arabia to keep her under surveillance in the UK last year, according to western intelligence sources.

The US believed the kingdom had the “ambition and intention” to monitor Cengiz in London last May, seven months after Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where he had gone to obtain papers so the couple could marry.

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US man held in Russia on spy charges has detention extended

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US embassy called last week for Russia to free former marine Paul Whelan, detained in 2018

A Moscow court has extended the detention of the former US marine Paul Whelan until 29 March on espionage charges, the Interfax news agency has reported.

Whelan, who holds US, British, Canadian and Irish passports, was detained in December 2018 and accused of spying.

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US Navy bans TikTok from mobile devices saying it’s a cybersecurity threat

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Users who don’t remove the Beijing-based app will be blocked from Navy Marine Corp intranet

The United States Navy has banned the social media app TikTok from government-issued mobile devices, saying the popular short video app represented a cybersecurity threat.

Related: US 'investigating TikTok as potential national security risk'

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One dead in shooting at Russian intelligence agency in Moscow

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Unidentified man fired on reception of Federal Security Service and was later shot dead

One person has been shot dead after an unidentified gunman opened fire on the office of the Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia’s main intelligence agency, in the heart of Moscow.

According to Russian media reports, the man attacked the reception of the Lubyanka building, home to the FSB and its communist-era predecessor the KGB. The victim was described as a traffic police officer. Other FSB guards were injured in the shooting, with two in a critical condition, officials said.

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US covertly expelled Chinese officials who drove on to military base – report

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The US government covertly moved to expel two officials from the Chinese embassy earlier this year after they drove onto a military base, the New York Times reported, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter.

The newspaper reported that one of the two officials is believed to be an intelligence officer operating under diplomatic cover.

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Labor condemns ‘disgraceful’ Westpac as Hartzer stands down – politics live

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Westpac chief executive’s resignation draws little sympathy on all sides of politics. All the day’s events, live

And here is another indication of where question time is headed:

Last week, a bank broke money laundering laws 23 million times.

But instead of going after them, the Liberals are going after unions – trying to take away their right to exist.

This Government hates working people. We'll fight them every step of the way. pic.twitter.com/9vMhFquk4W

A group of north Queensland dairy farmers are on their way to Canberra to express their frustrations at what is happening within their industry.

That’s at the same time the Nationals are trying to get ahead of Pauline Hanson, who may have come late to the issues, but certainly has been running full steam ahead since becoming aware of it.

David Littleproud, the drought minister, some time ago said he fixed the supermarket [milk price] problem. He said he thumped his chest, waved his fists at them, and demanded they put their milk prices up.

Well, we know that solution lasted about five minutes.

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Stuart Robert on robodebt: ‘This government does not apologise’ – politics live

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Aged-care package ‘falls well short’ of what is required, Labor says; Morrison responds to Chinese spy plot allegations; and Jacqui Lambie ‘not supporting a repeal’ of medevac, Rex Patrick says. All the day’s events, live

And on that note, we are going to ground this plane - but we will be back tomorrow morning for more fun and games.

There are officially seven sitting days left. Medevac and ensuring integrity are still high on the government’s wish list, but, as always the crossbench is the key. It looks like the government has agreed to Pauline Hanson’s amendments for the union bill, but she is still holding out. Jacqui Lambie has a diary full of meetings when it comes to medevac. Keep a close eye on that one.

Something to watch out for, tomorrow

Our 2019 Mapping #SocialCohesionReport launches tomorrow, 26 November. The report produced in partnership with @MonashUni researchers uses a comprehensive survey to gauge a nuanced understanding of shifts in public opinion on social cohesion and population issues.

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Russia frees Norwegian and two Lithuanians in swap for pair of its spies

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Cold war style-agreement brings several high-profile espionage cases to a close

Russia has freed two Lithuanians and a Norwegian in return for two Russian spies held in Lithuania, in a cold war-style spy swap that brought several high-profile espionage cases to a close.

The Norwegian, Frode Berg, a retired border guard, was arrested in Moscow in 2017 and convicted of gathering intelligence on behalf of Norway. He pleaded not guilty.

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Trump rejects whistleblower offer to answer Republican questions

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A day after a lawyer for the whistleblower who raised alarms about Donald Trump’s dealings with Ukraine said his client is willing to answer written questions submitted by House Republicans, the president tweeted: “Written answers not acceptable!”

Related: 'Quid pro quo, yes or no?' Trump allies face Ukraine question

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Trump-Russia dossier author gave evidence to UK intrusion inquiry

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Exclusive: Report allegedly being withheld by No 10 contains submissions from ex-head of MI6’s Russia desk

A report on Russian interference in British politics allegedly being sat on by Downing Street includes evidence from Christopher Steele, the former head of MI6’s Russia desk whose investigation into Donald Trump’s links with Moscow sparked a US political scandal.

Steele made submissions in writing to parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC), it is understood. A counter-intelligence specialist, Steele spent his career tracking Russian influence operations around the world and investigated Alexander Litvinenko’s 2006 murder.

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Ex-US marine held in Russia on spy charges says he is Mr Bean not Mr Bond

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Moscow court extends detention until 29 December for Paul Whelan, who says he’s being kept for a potential prisoner swap

A former US marine who has been held in Russia since last year on spy charges insisted he was more Mr Bean than Mr Bond as a Moscow court extended his detention for another two months.

Paul Whelan, 49, who has US, Irish, Canadian and British citizenship, denounced the case against him and said he was being held “hostage” for a possible prisoner exchange.

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British spy in IRA and 20 others could be charged with Troubles-era crimes

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Belfast prosecutors considering action against ‘Stakeknife’ and his British army handlers

A police inquiry into one of the biggest spy scandals in the history of British intelligence has recommended that more than 20 people including senior security force personnel and ex-IRA members be considered for prosecution, the Guardian has learned.

Operation Kenova, the multimillion-pound investigation into “Stakeknife” – the army agent at the heart of the IRA during the Northern Ireland Troubles – has now sent files identifying military commanders and at least one IRA veteran with a so-called “get-out-of-jail” card to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) in Belfast.

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Spy scandal: Canada reassures allies over leak that may be linked to Australian drug syndicate

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Intelligence officer Cameron Ortis had access to classified information from Five Eyes allies, including Australia

Canada is seeking to reassure its Five Eyes intelligence allies in the wake of a massive alleged spying leak that may be linked to an Australian drug-smuggling criminal syndicate.

Cameron Ortis, the director general of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s intelligence unit, has been charged over allegations he was trying to sell secrets to a foreign agent or terrorist group. He had access to classified information from Canada’s Five Eyes global allies, including Australia.

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Canada’s intelligence service: theft of information is ‘potentially devastating’

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Theft of classified information by a senior intelligence officer could ‘cause grave injury to Canada’s national interests’

The theft of classified information by a senior intelligence officer could be “devastating” to Canada’s national security, the country’s spy service has warned, as concern over the security breach continues to grow.

In a series of internal documents obtained by the CBC, Canada’s intelligence service outlined fears that details of the country’s spycraft could have been comprised after the theft of sensitive information by Cameron Ortis, 47, a director general with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s intelligence unit.

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