Spyware Company Leaves 'Terabytes' of Selfies, Text Messages, and Location Data (vice.com) 58
An anonymous reader writes: Spyfone, a company that sells surveillance software to parents and employers left 'terabytes of data' including photos, audio recordings, text messages and web history, exposed in a poorly-protected Amazon S3 bucket. News outlet Motherboard verified that the researcher could access anyone's data by creating a free account and installing the spyware on a test device. After a few hours, the researcher sent me back a picture I took.
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Notification Disaster (Score:1)
So now are they going to have to notify their "Targets" of a breach who will learn they were being spied upon?
Re: Notification Disaster (Score:5, Insightful)
1. Parents have admin access to the smartphones.
2. Parents installs Spyfone.
3. Parents clicks "accept" on the wall of text they did not read.
4. Parents give smartphone back to children.
5. Prof... there is no step five.
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Looks like it's not just corporations using it. Most kids could probably figure out that the software is installed, and I would hope that most parents would tell them that this is installed to stop them from doing stuff they would be caught with, but I'm sure there's children (and spouses) who have this kind of think installed on their phone without their knowledge and consent.
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I'd actually expect the majority of those installs to happen without the consent or even knowledge of those afflicted.
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I must admit I was tempted a few times. It's easy to give in to temptation, especially when your wife is relying on you to maintain her phone. But after thinking about it I decided against it for three reasons:
1. I already had full control over her phone (since I bought it, configured it and maintain it 100%)
2. I don't trust ANY third party company with that data
3. I am getting a divorce anyway. What happens after we separate is none of my business.
Re: Notification Disaster (Score:4)
How the hell can someone get the idea that it's ok to spy on someone they allegedly love?
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That's okay, he's getting a divorce!
Re: Notification Disaster (Score:4, Informative)
Jealousy. Need for control. Doubt. Scientific curiosity (not kidding). Reciprocal agreement.
Enough reasons?
Re: Notification Disaster (Score:1)
No that doesn't make it ok.
And supervising your child is in no way spying.
Re: Notification Disaster (Score:4, Interesting)
As someone who had ZERO privacy as a child, I can tell you with some certainty that this is the perfect way if you wanted to ensure your kids would not trust you with anything, even if you were the last person on earth or the only one who they'd know could solve a problem.
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You think spying on your child would allow you to avoid this? If anything could allow you to avoid this, it's your child actually trusting you. Which you certainly won't achieve by doing something that ultimately destroys that trust.
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How the hell can someone get the idea that it's ok to spy on someone they allegedly love?
Thus the divorce. Looks like she should run fucking fast to restraining order land.
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How the hell can someone get the idea that it's ok to spy on someone they allegedly love?
What does whether or not you love them have to do with whether or not they are cheating on you?
Think about that, because that is in fact how it works.
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Most kids could probably figure out that the software is installed
Depends on the kids, and how good the software is at hiding.
I can provide a single data point: my kids. They spend hours and hours and hours on their phones and fewer (but still plenty) hours on computers, and yet they don't really have much of an understanding of how it all works -- they know how to use them well, but aren't really interested in going deeper.
So as long as any "big brother" kind of software made any effort at all to remain hidden, they'd probably never notice. At least until there were a
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Also, what is with the single quotes around the word "Terabytes"?
I imagine someone speaking that sentence and when they get to the word Terabytes, they make air quote gestures with their fingers.
Is it actual terabytes of data or is that implied hyperbole?
no comment (Score:1)
Parents, I'd have one question to you (Score:5, Interesting)
Why would you want someone who you don't know the least thing about spy on your kids? Because he shares his findings with you?
Do you also hire some seedy looking hobo as a babysitter?
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Why would you want someone who you don't know the least thing about spy on your kids? Because he shares his findings with you?
Do you also hire some seedy looking hobo as a babysitter?
I don't. I just don't let my kids have smartphones.
You approve ... right?
Or is your real issue with parents doing anything protective in this regard?
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Even as an adult of intelligence and wisdom, if no one has taught you how to properly and safely use a power tool, it would still be correct to say such a person should not be trusted to use one, yes?
Depends entirely on whether I may be there with a camera and get the international rights to the pictures.
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Your kids will probably be seen as weirdos or at the very least have a hard time socializing in a teenage society that exists mostly via instagram and whatsapp, but that's a different concern. My business is security, not psychotherapy.
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He wanted fridge privileges last time, too, that's where I draw the line!
Unencrypted, naturally. (Score:1)