Tag Archive for: spied

Are You Being Spied On? This Google Hack Can Access Security Cameras At Airports, Schools And Other Places – Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG)

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In this article, we will explain how anyone — and not just information technology experts — can find and access security cameras, passwords, system logs and other databases that were meant to be secret. 

Before proceeding further, it is important to consider that performing the actions described in this article may or may not be illegal based on your local legislation. This information is being divulged to convey the importance of network security and educate the readers.

What Happened: Scanning networks, which include the internet itself, is one of the most common ways to find vulnerabilities and access data and services that were not meant to be accessible. 

Traditionally it would be done from a command line with a tool like Nmap, but another well-known way to find this kind of weakness is by leveraging Google, a company that kindly scans the whole internet and indexes its findings doing most of the work for us.

See Also: Why Exchanging Financial Information Via Email Is So Risky – And How It’s Gotten Worse

This kind of usage of Alphabet Inc.‘s GOOG GOOGL search engine is usually called “Google Dorking” — dorks, a word describing “a contemptible, socially inept person” and in this case, referring to whoever managed to misconfigure the services you find with this technique. This approach leverages very specific search queries that use Google modifiers to find data that should have been private, but due to misconfiguration is public.

How To Do It: One example is searching for “allintext:username filetype:.env,” which limits our results to only text files with the .env extension and searches for the word “username” in their content. This kind of search tends to find configuration files that contain usernames and passwords of external services such as emails or databases, often very secure and long alphanumerical passwords that would have been quite safe if they were not broadcasted in plain text for the whole world to see.

A much more unsettling example is the search query “intitle:”webcamXP 5″” which tells Google to only return results that contain exactly “webcamXP 5” in their title — this being the default title of the video feed page of a certain family of security…

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Wolverhampton stalker spied on victim in her home after hacking her security CCTV

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A stalker has been jailed after hacking into a woman’s security CCTV to spy on her in her own home.

George Coughlan, from Wolverhampton, also created numerous bogus social media profiles to bombard the victim with abuse from December last year.

One chilling message he sent said: “I will make it my dying breath to mek ur life end too.”

Coughlan, 33, hacked into her home security system and downloaded 67 videos – with one of the messages he sent containing footage showing her relaxing in the lounge.

Officers arrested him on February 29 after the victim – who is known to Coughlan – contacted cops.

Police seized his phone for examination and revealed internet searches on the woman’s name and her partner, plus phrases including “log into iCloud without verification” and “free mobile phone tracker without user knowing”.

He’d also researched phone spyware to track SMS messages, calls, social apps and GPS movements.

Coughlan, from St Chads Road in Bilston, initially denied one count of stalking involving serious alarm and distress but in the face of compelling evidence presented to the court, he later admitted the charge.



graphical user interface, text, application, chat or text message: Messages which were sent tot the victim

© WMP
Messages which were sent tot the victim

On Friday, October 23, at Wolverhampton Crown Court he was jailed for 21 months. He was also made subject to a five-year restraining order in order to protect the victim. 

Inspector Cate Webb-Jones from our Public Protection Unit said: “Stalking is a serious crime, an invasion of someone’s privacy, and as we’ve seen with this case can result in a significant jail term.  

“Coughlan went to extreme lengths to exert control and intrude on his victim’s life. It was hugely upsetting and she was living day by day in fear. It’s simply not acceptable.

“Social media and easily accessible technology, such as spyware to track mobile phones, is giving stalkers more tools to harass victims and potentially put them in more danger.

“In the last year (April 19 to March 20) we saw reports of stalking and harassment rise by almost a third. Much of that is online offending and that trend continued during lockdown as people spent more time on social media.

“We don’t…

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Sextortion scam leverages Nest video footage to fool victims into believing they are being spied upon everywhere

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A bizarre sextortion scam is attempting to trick victims that not only has their smartphone been hacked to spy upon their private lives, but also every other device they have encountered which contains a built-in camera.

Read more in my article on the Hot for Security blog.

Graham Cluley