Animal Eavesdropping – CIA Spy Projects
We’re guessing most TSCM professionals don’t automatically consider the source of an eavesdropping attack to involve a family pet. Animal eavesdropping is something that has been explored by the CIA. It’s probably true that many other intelligence services worldwide have explored the possibility of using animals to eavesdrop.
Discussions in the Verrimus Operational TSCM Training Facility have, once again this morning, centred around imagining what other domestic animals could be turned into viable eavesdropping attacks. Goldfish seem to still be a favourite suggestion, what do you think? What do you think could possibly be better than cats?
One of our Red Team suggested that a reptile or tarantula enclosure could work well. They felt that the heat signature from an eavesdropping device would be confused with heat from the heat mat or light required, and so not immediately obvious to the thermal imaging camera. Hmmm, didn’t Gavin Williamson famously have a pet tarantula in his office?
“In a desperate attempt to gain an advantage over the Soviets, the CIA launched “Acoustic Kitty.” The Directorate of Science & Technology sought to train a surgically altered cat, wired with transmitting and control devices, to become a mobile, eavesdropping platform”
Full story in link below
So, what animal do you think could make a good eavesdropper? What domestic pet could wander inconspicuously about, or sit in a space, gathering audio and video?
When the CIA Spied on American Citizens—Using Pigeons – Atlas Obscura
Project Acoustic Kitty – A TSCM Challenge! – Verrimus (tscm-training.com)
The perfect countermeasure to an Acoustic Kitty privacy breach would be Odin, the bug sweeping dog!
