Government agencies caught in spyware web
At least four Australian companies have tried to sell a range of controversial spyware and surveillance tools to Australian law enforcement agencies as well as foreign governments, according to emails revealed by WikiLeaks.
The sophisticated spyware has been developed by controversial Italian company Hacking Team, which recently came under criticism for its links to repressive regimes.
Earlier this month Hacking Team’s inner workings were revealed after the company itself was hacked and thousands of emails were published by WikiLeaks.
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The trove of emails exposed the secretive and lucrative dealings of the private surveillance industry.
An investigation by the ABC revealed Australian companies have been acting as middle-men, dealing with Hacking Team on the one hand, and agencies such as the Australian Federal Police, Defence and Indonesian intelligence on the other.
Hacking Team’s leading product – called Remote Control System (RCS) – can siphon off data and listen in on communications before they are encrypted.
Once a computer or mobile phone is infected the tool can read emails, switch on the microphone or camera on the device, identify passwords and record Skype calls.
The emails, and inquiries by the ABC, reveal four Australian companies – Providence Australasia, Miltect, Criterion Solutions and GRC360 – have been in contact with Hacking Team.
Former AFP officer Nigel Phair told the ABC more transparency around those companies and their contractors was needed.
“If you’re going to rely on the private sector to develop technology which [is] going to use privacy invasion, spy on citizens, then you’ve really got to look at the bona fides of that organisation,” he said.
Greens senator Scott Ludlam said it was clear that Hacking Team “appear not to have a high moral threshold when it comes to choosing some of the client regimes they work with”.
“They operate though a series of sub-contractors and affiliates and it’s not easy to know who is working for who,” he said.
Suburban Perth, special ops and Ecuador
One company, Providence Australasia, operates from a suburban Perth home and has earned $70,000 this year by providing multimedia surveillance services to the Australian Defence Force.
In November 2012 Providence Australasia’s Matt Jamieson wrote to Hacking Team saying a number of agencies in Australia and New Zealand were interested in the Italian company’s product.
An internal Hacking Team email says: “FYI the client Providence is representing in Australia is the special forces from Defence. Apparently this client is already using Gamma’s solution but he is not happy at all with it and asked Providence to contact us. Time for us to defeat the competition!”
Providence then went a step further, attempting to sell some of its “black ops” capability to Hacking Team.
Hacking Team responded favourably.
“The training they provide is unconventional, focusing on military intelligence and surveillance … it may prove to be a high-value complementary formation. Well worth a try proposing it to some selected clients. Premium price here is mandatory!”
Hacking Team chief executive David Vincenzetti replied with “agreed”.
In a statement to the ABC, the Defence Department said the Army had “no direct relationship with Hacking Team”.
Other emails reveal that Providence facilitated an opportunity for Hacking Team in Ecuador, a country known for censoring news and persecuting opposition protesters.
“This is a new group to be formed by Ministerio del Interior (MDI) for the use of a number of agencies active in policing. The focus is on traffic social networks.”
The ABC has made several efforts to contact the Australian office of Providence for comment.
The company is yet to return the calls, however since the ABC first contacted Providence its Australian office listing has disappeared from its website.
The company has not responded to follow-up questions on email.
Miltect is another Australian surveillance company identified in the Hacking Team emails. It operates from a suburban house in regional NSW.
The company has traded over $1 million with Defence in the past few years, but its website says it also works with commercial clients.
A third Australian company identified in the Hacking Team emails is Criterion Solutions. In a series of emails, it is suggested the company was representing ASIO.
Last year alone the company earned over $5 million from the Australian Defence Force for items including “communication devices” and “surveillance and speciality aircraft”.
Former AFP officer Mr Phair said much of that was for drones.
– ABC