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A company head has been indicted for selling spyware application for smartphones, according to a report by Reuters today.
The CEO of the UK-based company InvoCode, Hammad Akbar, has been charged for conspiracy and surreptitious interception by the US Department of Justice. The company manufactured and sold StealthGenie, an undetectable and untraceable spyware application that could intercept communications to and from a mobile, including Apple, Android and Blackberry devices.
The application, once installed, allows conversation to be monitored, collects user’s incoming and outgoing email and SMS messages, incoming voicemail, address book, calendar, photographs and videos.
Additionally, the purchaser can call the phone and activate it any time to monitor conversations within a 15-foot radius.
“This application allegedly equips potential stalkers and criminals with a means to invade an individual’s confidential communications,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge McCabe.
How to Spy on Cell Phones Remotely? from StealthGenie
“They do this not by breaking into their homes or offices, but by physically installing spyware on unwitting victims’ phones and illegally tracking an individual’s every move. As technology continues to evolve, the FBI will investigate and bring to justice those who use illegal means to monitor and track individuals without their knowledge.”
Akbar, a native of Lahore, Pakistan, was charged with conspiracy, sale of surreptitious interception device, advertisement of a known interception device as well as for the advertising the device as a surreptitious interception device in the US District Court for Eastern District of Virginia.
“Selling spyware is not just reprehensible, it’s a crime. Apps like StealthGenie are expressly designed for use by stalkers and domestic abusers who want to know every detail of a victim’s personal life — all without the victim’s knowledge,” said Leslie Caldwell, Assistant Attorney Aeneral in the DOJ’s Criminal Division.
The US Attorney Boente commented, “StealthGenie has little use beyond invading a victim’s privacy,” adding further that “Advertising and selling spyware technology is a criminal offense, and such conduct will be aggressively pursued by this office and our law enforcement partners.”
Akbar was arrested in Los Angeles on Saturday and was expected to appear before the magistrate in the Central District of California on Monday.
Monitor IM’s on smartphones:
The indictment occurred in Virginia because the spyware application was hosted on a data center in Ashburn, Virginia. Part of the indictment focused its marketing tactics, which targeted,
“[S]pousal cheat: Husband/Wife of [sic] boyfriend/girlfriend suspecting their other half of cheating or any other suspicious behavior or if they just want to monitor them,” said the FBI statement.
It was also marketed as a parental monitor system for their children.
The indictment against Akbar is the first of its kind for selling spyware on the mobile market.
The CEO of the UK-based company InvoCode, Hammad Akbar, has been charged for conspiracy and surreptitious interception by the US Department of Justice. The company manufactured and sold StealthGenie, an undetectable and untraceable spyware application that could intercept communications to and from a mobile, including Apple, Android and Blackberry devices.
The application, once installed, allows conversation to be monitored, collects user’s incoming and outgoing email and SMS messages, incoming voicemail, address book, calendar, photographs and videos.
Additionally, the purchaser can call the phone and activate it any time to monitor conversations within a 15-foot radius.
“This application allegedly equips potential stalkers and criminals with a means to invade an individual’s confidential communications,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge McCabe.
How to Spy on Cell Phones Remotely? from StealthGenie
“They do this not by breaking into their homes or offices, but by physically installing spyware on unwitting victims’ phones and illegally tracking an individual’s every move. As technology continues to evolve, the FBI will investigate and bring to justice those who use illegal means to monitor and track individuals without their knowledge.”
Akbar, a native of Lahore, Pakistan, was charged with conspiracy, sale of surreptitious interception device, advertisement of a known interception device as well as for the advertising the device as a surreptitious interception device in the US District Court for Eastern District of Virginia.
“Selling spyware is not just reprehensible, it’s a crime. Apps like StealthGenie are expressly designed for use by stalkers and domestic abusers who want to know every detail of a victim’s personal life — all without the victim’s knowledge,” said Leslie Caldwell, Assistant Attorney Aeneral in the DOJ’s Criminal Division.
The US Attorney Boente commented, “StealthGenie has little use beyond invading a victim’s privacy,” adding further that “Advertising and selling spyware technology is a criminal offense, and such conduct will be aggressively pursued by this office and our law enforcement partners.”
Akbar was arrested in Los Angeles on Saturday and was expected to appear before the magistrate in the Central District of California on Monday.
Monitor IM’s on smartphones:
The indictment occurred in Virginia because the spyware application was hosted on a data center in Ashburn, Virginia. Part of the indictment focused its marketing tactics, which targeted,
“[S]pousal cheat: Husband/Wife of [sic] boyfriend/girlfriend suspecting their other half of cheating or any other suspicious behavior or if they just want to monitor them,” said the FBI statement.
It was also marketed as a parental monitor system for their children.
The indictment against Akbar is the first of its kind for selling spyware on the mobile market.