In early February Insider will release The Little Black Book of Electronic Surveillance: 2015, the new and revised 2nd edition of the book that shook the marketplace. LBBES is the industry's most comprehensive guide to the biggest and most influential players in the industry, and has been expanded to include 200 companies. The book is available to members only. Who you'll … [Read more...]
Whatever Happened to Bull Amesys? Ask PLATH, Sarkozy — and Dubai
Months before Edward Snowden made his debut on the world scene, Bull Amesys -- a one-time giant of France's IT industry -- found itself embroiled in a public imbroglio over the sale of surveillance technologies to Libya's Muammar Qaddafi, a controversy that linked all the way up to the office of then President Nicolas Sarkozy. In the time since, the companies involved have … [Read more...]
Glimmerglass: Unchallenged Leader of Photonic Surveillance
When Edward Snowden leaked word of the NSA’s ability to monitor transoceanic fiber optic cables, credit for such powers went to the agency’s internal operations -- with no mention of the company whose technology likely underlies the system: Glimmerglass. Based in Hayward, CA, Glimmerglass Cyber Solutions may well be the grand-daddy of all fiber optic interception and … [Read more...]
South Africa’s VASTech: Surveillance Leader for the Developing World
The story of South Africa's VASTech reads like a Wilbur Smith adventure: the hero, a young maverick who grows up in the shadow of a political sibling, strikes out on his own with a brilliant tech startup, makes a killing in the developing world, then at the height of his success dies in a mysterious plane crash in Libya. One year later during the violent upheaval of Arab Spring … [Read more...]
NSA Decryption: New Snowden Leak is Ancient History
A breaking Der Spiegel story on NSA decryption challenges aroused little interest in the U.S. this week, raising doubts whether source Edward Snowden remains relevant and if stolen files dating back many months still hold news value. While it's SOP in the media business that anything never before reported is still news, the same principle doesn't apply in the electronic … [Read more...]