The Lebanese secret intelligence Agency seemingly caught spying on Android phones of thousands of the people worldwide. The targeted people are military officers, journalists and others belong to almost 20 major countries. The human rights groups and technology firms in recent years has revealed that governments and secret services are dependent on Android cell phones & computer spying software instead of using the traditional forms of counterintelligence, according to the researchers at the Electronic Frontier Foundation and lookout, a mobile security organization.
Researchers have stated that the Lebanese spy agency has caught spying on thousands of the people android cell phones and they belong to almost 20 countries of the world. The targeted people were not only ordinary citizens of the countries, even the people belong to the media organizations and military personals and others. On the other hand, the technology-based companies and human rights communities have their view that the intelligence agencies are heavily relying on the cell phone tracking apps and as well as on the desktop computer monitoring software.
It is the evidence that, the Lebanese secret intelligence agency has ordered to Director of General Security, GDGS to use hidden spyware for android phones of the people and to spy on computer desktop devices as well by using the different methods since last six years, the researchers added that.
Once these cell phones and computer spying apps downloaded into the targeted gadgets and machines, it will get all the data of the victims and spy on text messages, passwords to read emails from Gmail and others. It can also steal the contact lists, call logs, browsing history, audio call recording, and photos stored on the android phones and computer devices. It can further capture the photos by hacking and front and back camera of the Android smartphone and can also hack the microphone silently to record the conversation and surroundings. Apps are not developed for the Apple iPhone users.
GDGS is the mainstream intelligence agency of the Lebanese, on other hands its DG, Maj General Abbas Ibrahim, is the well-decorated army officer and has very high profile portfolio. The secret services have their hands on residency permits for the foreigners, diplomats, and plenty of South Asian workers and even on the millions of refugees. However, the intelligence has their expertise in the human intelligence rather than using the technology-based spying methods.
”General Ibrahim has denied all the claims made by the reports and publications and stated that security does not mean that we have such type of technology tools and we wish that we have this type of technology”.
Researchers from Electronic Frontier Foundation and Lookout began have affirmed believe that it was nation-state spy campaign in the year of 2016. At that point in time, the (FFF) also revealed in a report that it was the campaign against the journalists and human rights activists that have been very critical of the authorities of Kazakhstan. The campaign has used the technology to spy on android phone users.
A spy screenshot has taken through the smartphone in Jan. 18.2017, shows that Wi-Fi placed at the corner of Pierre Gemayel and Damascus Street in Beirut. On the other hand, the report published Thursday morning revealed that second Wi-Fi network from the top belongs to the GDGS, Lebanon’s secret services, which is at the same particular address.
Researchers have tracked the spying command and control servers operated by the attackers. They further investigated who registered the servers and what point of time and exact time and place of the stolen content. They have learned that the campaign has started over the last six years.
The attackers have targeted a number of people, including government high officials, military officers, financial institutions, defense contractors, and others in more than 20 countries. The targeted countries are the United States, China, Germany, Russia, India, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and the inside Lebanon.
The attacks have traced that goes in the building of Beirut that houses Lebanon’s GDGS, with the help of Wi-Fi internet networks and internet protocol address that has assigned to the attacker’s machines, researchers further added that.
On the other hands, researchers also stated that they are not sure about the attacks to have governed by the GDGS or it is from the rogue elements.
Previously, the entire world has come to know when wiki leaks revealed a trove that the secret intelligence agency CIA has compromised user’s Android, iOS phones and even the shared content on the instant messaging apps and social media websites. Similarly, the Lebanese spy agency targeting the people to install the android monitoring app through Whatsapp social messaging app, to begin with, the “How are you” that lined with android spyware alongside the additional messages such as “you can download it from here”.
However, hack someones facebook can be started, attracting people towards the Facebook groups, by posting the links directly attached to the secret android spy app. Moreover, they also target the android phone users and desktop computer users with the help of fake login sites for social media services such as Facebook, Twitter and then get their hands on their login credentials to hack their accounts and to push out messages to other users. The Iranian hackers a couple weeks ago has hacked the telegram private chats and hackers has spread the crypt currency mining malware through Facebook.
However, researchers also come to the point that Lebanese officials had used spyware, a product that has developed by the British company Gamma international that actually sells spying tools. The tools were capable of turned the android phones and computer machines into surround listening machines and to monitor text messages, calls and to track hidden whereabouts. At the end, the researchers have found that attackers had created their ow
n hidden spyware for androids that was not as much advanced as British spy app but work effectively for the job of intelligence.
