Who and how we overheard. Bashny.Net

"Not on the phone." "Now I get back to the other room." "Let's go outside, take a walk, then it is better not to talk." Such phrases have become part of the life of the Russian establishment, and in fact a few years ago complaining of wiretapping phones and offices took over the half-mad, like those who wear tin foil hat and believes in zombiruyut rays KGB. Today, everyone knows: listen to everyone, listen without looking at the law, and these materials are more likely to use wiretaps not in court, but in the political intrigue, denunciations, provocations. The source spoke to one of the professionals in the shadow market of electronic intelligence to figure out how to work this area.

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Who listens.

In the language of the law enforcement agencies wiretapping phones and control Internet traffic abbreviation called "SORM" - "System of technical means to provide the functions of investigative work." SORM-1 - a set of measures aimed at wiretapping mobile SORM-2 - mobile Internet traffic. Today, such methods of investigation come to the fore, overshadowing the traditional forensic approaches. Accordingly, the units responsible for SORM are becoming increasingly influential in the composition of the Interior. In the Sverdlovsk region is, for example, the Bureau of Special Technical Measures (BSTM) Research Affairs in Sverdlovsk region and the operational and technical department (GRT) of Federal Security Service in Sverdlovsk region.

By law, wiretapping phones and control Internet traffic is possible only by court order. However, the law allows investigators to "start recording" and without it, if the matter is urgent and necessary to prevent wiretapping planned crime. Around the same principle investigators "as an exception" allowed to conduct searches, obtain court authorization after the event. As in the case of searches, law enforcement officers often use this rule to obtain uncontrolled access to other people's secrets.

There are also ways to legalize the illegal wiretapping by placing the desired name and phone number in a long list of persons suspected on some criminal cases. As they say sources in the bodies, judges almost never delve into how this or that is associated with the name of the criminal case and sign the resolution "one fell swoop." Such judgments are classified as "secret", and who appeared in the lists "on the wiretap," citizens will never know.

However, experts involved in wiretapping, say, today more and more people "put on the record" and even without any court decision. Each operator installed equipment that allows law enforcement officers at all times to access any customer conversations (this operators required by law). A regional FSB have remote access terminal, with which you can in a few clicks to start listening to any mobile user.

By law, the right to wiretap have several special services. Except for the FSB, is the Interior Ministry, Federal Drug Control Service, Federal Penitentiary Service, Customs, Federal Security Service, Foreign Intelligence Service. But control of the equipment, providing job-SORM SORM-1 and 2, it is the FSB. As explained by experts to deliver a particular number on the wiretap, officers from the police bureau for special technical measures does not necessarily run to the Federal Security Service and asked to press a button: the Interior Ministry and other organs, leading operational-search activities, has its own access terminals. But they are connected "by the FSB", that is the main key is still located at the security officers.

"So, for example, in the case of wiretapping Roizman would be difficult to convert all arrows on the police and make it appear that the FSB to do with it" - says the source Znak.com. According to him, the responsibility for unauthorized wiretapping and its leakage in any case are two departments.



"Why do you need so many phones?»

How to protect yourself from eavesdroppers? Almost nothing. Firstly, it is useless to change the SIM-card: do not give it to wiretap mobile number, and a unique number phone (IMEI). Whatever Sim has not been installed in your phone, it will still be "live».

Many in the business establishment and carry a phone number, considering that a "normal" Listen, the other - the "left" - no. "It is naive - says the source Znak.com. - If a man put on a wiretap, employees are kept informed of the whereabouts of his phone. To do this, the phone does not have to be installed unit GPS, the location of even the most simple and cheap tube is determined by the base stations to within one meter. And if you carry a few tubes, according to the geolocation it is clear that next to your 'core' number there is always the other 2-3. They were also immediately put on a wiretap, so go with a bunch of phones is absolutely senseless ».

However, there is a little trick with two tubes, which makes it relatively safe to keep the secret negotiations. "Let's say there are two devices - A and B. A is used constantly and there is reason to believe that he was listening. B - for confidential conversations, registered to another person. In this case, A and B must never be switched on simultaneously and together. If you want to make a call on the "secret" phone B, you turn off the A, departing away, within range of another base station, and then turn on the B, make a call. Then turn off the B, again traveling to another base station, and then turn have A », - says our interlocutor. Another way - constantly kept "secret" phone in some hidden place, each time coming to him from off the "main" mobile phone.

Particular caution victim wiretaps prefer to switch off the phone during an important conversation or hide it far away. Interlocutor Znak.com confirms that recording capability via the phone in standby mode, there is, but this technology is used infrequently. "In these cases, a so-called microphone effect. This can be done only if in the vicinity of the interlocutors has a team of specialists. The signal receiver and the writer must be somewhere near, "- he explains.



How it works.

Another thing - the usual wiretapping. It can be mass. Today in Ekaterinburg FSB power allow you to listen at the same time 25-50 thousand subscribers in Moscow - hundreds of times more. The main problem is how to record information, and how to decode it and process it. The Research Affairs in Sverdlovsk region, for example, has a special department "analysts" who are engaged in a simple transcript recorded conversations, converting audio to text. Now Sverdlovsk law enforcement, using as a pretext the preparations for the 2018 World Cup and Expo 2020, set themselves the task of increasing hardware power of wiretaps. And to create better systems for processing the information received - this is a challenge for security forces not only in Russia but also worldwide. Recent scandals in the United States show that the Russian security services is not only passionate about illegal or semi-legal "Monitoring».

A world leader in systems analysis and data processing for special services is an American company Palantir Technologies. According to the source Znak.com, Palantir technologies used by both US government agencies such as the CIA and Russian - including the FSB and the information-analytical center of the Russian government. "Last barely fit in the head. It turns out that the entire volume of government information, including classified, goes through the American system. It's like Barack Obama to set "1C" », - the interlocutor ironically Znak.com.

In Russia, one of the largest suppliers of "analytical" software for security services is also Avicomp Services. A hardware and software solutions for the "monitoring" (ie wiretaps) actively selling Novosibirsk company "Signatek." On its website says it offers "the subjects of operational investigative-activity" "monitoring system communications include telephone calls, fax sessions, video calls, messages, SMS, FEB, ICQ, e-mail" and "Monitoring of moving objects with visualization map ».



What'sApp or Viber?

From the analysis of Internet traffic suspicious people (SORM-2) in the security forces until the situation is somewhat worse than wiretapping conversations. While telecom operators provide exactly the same intelligence agencies any information of the data analysis itself is quite complex. "Any smart phone constantly download and sends a huge amount of data. Until recently, there was a huge problem to isolate from all this mass of interesting information, such as conversation on Skype or WhatsApp. Now, however, this problem is solved as a whole, and even in the regions have learned to read online messengers "- says our source.

It is unsafe messenger he calls the popular What's App - forwards the information it is not encrypted. This encryption is, in Skype, and it would be reliable if the owners of the service by going to the domestic market, does not share code decryption with Russian security forces. Today, therefore, can be considered the most reliable communication for Viber, in which all data (and letters, and conversations for voice communication) is encrypted and is not available for domestic intelligence services ("That's why Viber is primarily trying to ban", - said our interlocutor). Statement as "superreliable" messenger service «Telegram» source Znak.com not too trusts, "as everything is done in Russia, including Pavel Durov».

Another relatively reliable way of correspondence - the use of phones BlackBerry, which has its own messaging service BlackBerry Messenger. The data is encrypted in it more reliable than Viber, access to the Russian security forces there, and perhaps that is why Russia is prohibited in BBM. To use it, we have to buy the phone in the United States and "razlochivat" it from Russian specialists.

The largest developer of programs and equipment SORM-2 in Russia - "MFISOFT", which supplies software to the FSB. In the description of the hardware-software complex "Sormovo" listed on their website, they say that he can put the user under control of the account name, phone number, email address, IP and number ICQ. The complex provides a "detection and interception of e-mail messages by e-mail," "intercept files transferred via protocol FTP», «listening IP-telephony", etc.



For anyone watching.

Perhaps the siloviki would like "to hear all", but in reality, under the constant supervision of all 200-300 people in Yekaterinburg, said the source Znak.com. Most of them - suspected extremists (mainly Islamist) terrorists and members of organized crime groups in development, participants of opaque financial transactions of large scale ("obnalichniki", etc.). Only less than 10% of the total mass of "supervised" listen to the political order, said the source Znak.com.

"Exactly listen to the governor, his entourage, the first people of the city. Deputies of the Legislative Assembly and the City Duma - is unlikely unless someone ordered competitors. But this is a rare case, phone no one important had not said, and spend 70 thousand rubles a day to wiretap a competitor willing to not many "- says our source.

Recently, there is another proven way to become a victim of wiretapping - regularly criticize the current government or go to demonstrations. Of course, all the participants of street actions will not be heard, but the most active - quite. In Yekaterinburg, long time listening Yevgeny Roizman and Aksanov Panov - both opponents of the Sverdlovsk Governor Yevgeny Kuyvasheva. Surrounded by the governor does not hide the fact that printouts of their conversations regularly fall on the head of the table region.



"FSBuk»

In recent years, an increasingly important role in the structure plays a SORM analysis of the information collected in the social networks. Intelligence agencies have access to all the correspondence, leading to the Russian social networks, according to the source Znak.com. C Facebook is more complicated, but here the mystery of communion is not guaranteed. "A relatively safe way to communicate - through the western mail services: Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, - said the source Znak.com. - More efficient network of Tor, which guarantees the anonymity of the users. With its help, including American journalists communicate with their informers ».

For the exchange of information more and more people and organizations are using cloud services like Dropbox, «Yandex.Disk», «Google disk» and others. They are also interested in law enforcement. From popular services is considered to offer a relatively reliable Google, but our source suggests paying attention to Wuala: storage that supports encryption with servers in Switzerland. However, if you save your secrets are not from the Russian security services, and from the US, you hardly something to help. A few days ago another "Ultrasafe" cloud service Lavabit was mysteriously closed and all users lose their information. Apparently, the fact that almost Lavabit enjoyed former CIA agent Edward Snowden.



Under the hood.

Rare Russian businessman and politician today discussing on the phone that something important fishing and football. Therefore, in addition to the analysis of the actual texts of the negotiations, electronic intelligence professionals engaged in processing large amounts of data, identifying the mathematical regularities implicit communication system on the basis of the hypothesis that the interaction of certain groups or persons. The material for this are the phone calls, emails, bank transactions, registration and liquidation of legal entities, etc.

Censorship of electronic correspondence, monitoring telephone conversations have gone so far as to not even dream novelist-dystopia. Perhaps the power of SORM often helps to prevent the attacks or real real crime. But for a society where more noticeable cases where electronic surveillance methods are used for political persecution and have no relation to the legal procedures. Thus from uncontrolled surveillance suffer not only the opposition, but also loyal to the Kremlin policy. Assembled by electronic means compromising often becomes a tool of the elite fight against those who have recently he ordered the wiretapping of his enemies. In this sense, electronic intelligence has become a danger from which no one is immune.



How Ural policies suffer from surveillance and try to escape.

From the illegal wiretapping of all suffering. Director of the Foundation to Support Civil Initiatives "Law Mission" (Chelyabinsk) Alex told Tabalov Znak.com, that "all his telephone conversations tapped" and he convinced repeatedly. Chairman of the Foundation Board "Voice - Ural" Yuriy Gurman also assured us that his organization intelligence agencies listening to phone and look through e-mail correspondence. "I know that listening, and let them hear. While getting ugly, "- he said.

Deputy of the Legislative Assembly of the Perm Territory Vladimir Nelyubin told Znak.com, at the entrance to certain high offices now decided to hand over the phone assistant. Himself banker uses the classic Nokia, does not recognize the modern messenger and defend against wiretapping is not going to. A former head of the governor's administration Prikamye Firdus Aliyev believes that it is impossible to defend against wiretapping. "Such actions do not exist, it is an illusion. Only a personal relationship maximizes the leak, and you have to fly here [at the meetings], "- he said Znak.com.

In "Tyumen matryoshka" only in the South, in Tyumen, accustomed themselves to the messenger like Viber and WhatsApp: in the Khanty and YaNAO 3G coverage is much less expensive and use them. But northern officials are actively using the hardware against wiretapping. For example, in the office of one of the senior officials behind the curtain is "jammers" that it includes during important conversations. As they say, the sound of this device emits a spooky, so long to speak, when it works, just physically hard.

The same manager talks about the mobile communication completely fantastic stories. According to him, today the security officers have the equipment that once writing timbre of your voice, when you need them in the future you write will automatically turn on what phone you have spoken. Therefore, change rooms and devices does not make sense. Rather suspicious officials applies to the products of Apple, although it enjoys since when became president, Dmitry Medvedev, who introduced the fashion among civil servants on the iPhone and iPad. However, he stuck black tape camera lens on both gadgets. The official assured that with the help of cameras for the owner of the device can be monitored.

With one of the governors "Tyumen matryoshka" observed without iPhones.




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