AnnaChapman

Latest

  • Alleged Russian spies used WiFi and pre-paid cellphones, got caught anyways

    by 
    Joseph L. Flatley
    Joseph L. Flatley
    07.05.2010

    Are the new crop of Russian spies nerds like us? We doubt it (we probably have more in common with Lil Wayne than a certain "Anna Chapman," if that is her real name). How do they do their dirty work, then? Apparently their kit is mostly off-the-shelf: including laptops and flash memory cards. According to the FBI, two of the recently accused perps would meet at a coffee shop in Manhattan every Wednesday, where one would sit inside, while they other passed by in a van. When in range, they would connect over WiFi and transfer encrypted communications over their network. (The FBI was able to sniff this out using commercial software. Had they used ultra-wideband radio, however, the investigator's task would probably have been all but impossible). It's also believed that the spies used pre-paid cellphones to communicate. One such unit, purchased by Chapman, had the following listed for her address: 99 Fake Street. It just goes to show you that all the gadgetry in the world will not protect you from your lack of common sense.