Dummy Cursors

Passwords could be set to remain in some cases, yet rather than typing them into a keyboard, users will instead see the screen populated by ‘dummy cursors’ that move across an on-screen keyboard or number pad.  This has been inspired by studies showing that even if the screen is filled with randomly moving dummy cursors, users can quickly identify which one is theirs.

Naturally, there is a concern around this that if someone can spot it themselves, could someone standing over your shoulder also identify it quickly?  The research team responsible for this project thinks not, but surely the biggest benefit from this will be that remote hackers will not be able to identify a password as easily as they currently can in a lot of cases.  Again, the big question will be if the physical computer user can identify their cursor quickly, how can we be sure that the experienced hacker won’t be able to do so, or upload a remote program so that, from their point of view, the dummy cursors are removed?

Moving Forward

Given the way that biometric mechanisms have already started appearing on smartphones and tablets, it seems unconceivable that they will not ultimately become the way in which we access our computer systems.

While these will still leave concerns around hacking and people using spyware to view our IT activities, it will at least go a long way to reassuring us on a local level.  The widespread development of biometrics means that prices of hardware are not going to rocket when they become integrated into systems, and we can expect to see much more of it in the coming years.

What if you want to look at a specific element of computer use, however, such as social media?  A social media tracking device could be the tool you need.

We explored the pros and cons of such a device.

Getting Specific

Clearly, a social media tracker is great news for anyone who wants to look specifically at these elements without having to cut through e-mails, website history, and anything else that someone does on a computer.

It works in much the same way as traditional computer monitors do, too, simply by installing a hidden program via USB onto the system you wish to analyse, before plugging the USB into your own laptop or desktop.

Unfortunately, that is where the benefits begin and end.

Downfalls

While there is no doubt this is a useful product, the cost is a major drawback.  At £139.99, it is possible to pick up an ‘all in one’ monitor at a cheaper price to take care of your computer surveillance, so we’re not sure why you would pay for such a product.

The other big drawback is that a lot of social media use takes place on mobile smartphones and tablets, so unless you invest in a spy tool for the person’s mobile as well, you aren’t going to get an extensive picture of someone’s social media activity.

A good product, yes, but one that perhaps there wasn’t a need for when you can get something more wide reaching at the same price or cheaper.

Security systems and spy gadgets can be a little like your smartphone, however.  Great to own, but it can be difficult to know whether you are really making the most of their potential.

Check out our top tips for how to make the most of whatever tools you use, whether it is a full home security suite or something as simple as spy phone software.

Take Every Upgrade

Almost all the spy sites we use offer an upgrade or add on product of some description when you buy something from them.  We recommend taking whatever it is they are suggesting.  Yes, ultimately you spend more money.  However, the benefits you will get from an upgraded battery pack, a better camera resolution, or increased storage space, will soon pay for themselves as you find you have the security you need.

Get Mobile

Look out for gadgets that can send images or information straight to your smartphone or tablet.  There are many examples of these you can easily get hold of, with recording pens, covert video surveillance cameras, and many more having the ability to transmit data to a mobile device directly.  Why wait for the opportunity to sit down and look at the information, when you can have it sent to you as things occur?

Use Variety

While a covert video surveillance camera might give you some information, it doesn’t give you full context of a situation.  We suggest using a combination of whatever gadgets you can.  This may mean a GPS tracker in conjunction with an audio surveillance recorder, or hidden cameras and recorders at home in addition to spyware placed on a phone or computer.

Whoever is the target of your surveillance activities, even if you are just going down the ‘peace of mind’ route for the home, using a wider range of gadgets and tools will leave you in a much better place to deliver your objectives.

Are you getting the most you can out of your spy tools?  If you aren’t, consider changing up your plan with some of the ideas we suggested here.

While it is unclear what the full range of features could be, Google themselves say that their purpose is to offer a sense of ‘augmented reality,’ and give us a new way to access the internet on the move and perhaps even contact friends.

Having looked at the product, we decided to ask whether it may have a future as a spy gadget, too.

In recent days we have explored one product that could offer possibilities for the future, as well as looking at useful ‘every day’ items that can double as a spy camera or audio surveillance tool, for example.

‘Google Glass’ is certainly well placed to enter that market in the coming years.  The great thing for anyone using the product is that there is an element of ‘hidden in plain sight’ about them.  Yes, they have a camera on them, but if many people are wearing them who is ever going to suspect that you are using them for surveillance?  This product could also mean you avoid the awkward situation of trying to pass off sunglasses on a particularly dull day.

The product opens up an exciting set of new possibilities, especially if features such as the ability to email pictures directly to yourself or a client, for example, if you are a private investigator, are enabled.  Shooting short video will presumably be possible, too, as will looking up information online if necessary, which could be crucial.

What if you have a home security system, for example, and you could access a ‘live feed’ via your glasses and see what is happening, or get an alert whenever movement is tracked so you can ‘dial in’ only when necessary?

Google have played a key role in innovating across a number of industries, and although the spy and security may not be their main target with their new ‘Glass’ product, there is no question that it could have a huge impact.

The only problem with a GPS tracker, however, is that it is somewhat blatant, especially if you don’t want someone to know you’re watching them.

“Darling, I believe you are having an affair with your colleague from work, could you please place this in your bag so I can be sure,” isn’t likely to work.

What are your options?

Take It With You

There are a whole host of ways you can track someone’s movements without them knowing that you’re on to them, and the best way is often to use an everyday product.

We took a quick look at some of the best ideas.

Watch

A watch can not only be secretly fitted with a GPS tracker, but also an audio surveillance recorder, too.  This could be crucial for your peace of mind, and can easily be given as a gift on a special occasion, which is very unlikely to arouse suspicion.

You can take advantage of a watch, too, as they can be fitted with small digital cameras so if you want to follow a partner or employee, for example, you can take quick, discreet photos before swiftly exiting the scene.

Pen

Pens can be used in the same manner as a watch, but an audio recording pen is also a great tool to leave laying around the office or your home, especially if it is placed in an existing pencil case or jar, for example.

These simple gadgets are activated by speech, and could be key to you finding out the information you need, whether it is left lying around the home or slipped discretely into a partner or child’s bag.

Sunglasses

There is more than a touch of ‘James Bond’ about this gadget, but there is perhaps no better way to conceal a small spy camera than by using a pair of sunglasses.  The best examples of these can take clear HD photos and even shoot short videos discreetly, meaning if you need to follow someone you can easily gather the evidence you need without appearing out of place.

Surveillance on the move can often be needed as much as surveillance from a selected location.  Using these gadgets, you will be well set to gather whatever information you are trying to find.

The first thing that the new SpaceTop 3D computer brings to mind is the Tom Cruise movie Minority Report, given that the user can ‘touch’ everything within the system and navigate menus by physically moving things with their hands.

While this is an exciting product, and is obviously going to become a hit with tech junkies around the world, what are the possibilities for enhancing security?  Could a 3D monitor such as this become a top spy gadget?

At first glance, you would look at it and think ‘probably not,’ but what if changed the way we were able to use video surveillance and other monitoring tools?

The purpose of the project is to make us be able to interact with computers the same way that we do with solid objects.  There are already a number of CCTV systems that can be controlled remotely, and even ones that automatically follow any heat or movement.  Imagine if you are viewing your home from a remote location, for example, and you could set up a laptop and actually touch an image of the camera, point in the direction you want to, and zoom in and out as you would do on your smartphone.

Surely, a product such as this has the potential to make surveillance even easier.  It could even end the trend of CCTV control rooms filled with monitors and allow controllers to view the content they needed through on one screen.  What if 3D enabled cameras were developed, so that instead of watching an image on a screen you could actually ‘be in the room’ via your computer screen?

While this product is not going to revolutionise the security and spy industries tomorrow, there is no question that in the long-term it could become a valuable tool, both for personal use as well as security services.

Thankfully, we are unlikely to be headed too far towards a Minority Report scenario, at least, not yet.

Of course, some of us will use spy cameras and other pieces of spy gear in our lives, for whatever reason.  Others might not get the opportunity, however, but still have the desire to do so.

Why not get a job that will allow you to use such gadgets?

We explored some of the most exciting careers that could expose you to some of the best hi-tech spy gadgets on the planet.

Police Officer

Given the way cuts to public services are affecting the police force, it may not seem the most attractive job right now.  However, if you want the opportunity to use sophisticated surveillance equipment such as audio bugs, thermal imaging, and learn the inner workings of a city CCTV control centre, being a police officer could well be the job for you.

The Military

Is there any role within the military that is not somehow underpinned by the use of exciting gadgets?  While you will be exposed to many things that a police officer would be, much of the equipment will be far more sophisticated, and you will be able to try out surveillance equipment that you cannot buy from even the best spy shops, such as radar and, if you go far enough, drone aircraft.

Intelligence Services

Although life in the intelligence services is not as glamorous as the James Bond film franchise might have us believe, it is still an exciting world and one in which you could potentially find yourself using everything from personal location trackers to sophisticated computer spyware.

We can’t guarantee a remote controlled Aston Martin, unfortunately.

Private Investigator

If your passion for spy gadgets is such that you want to buy them to own yourself, then becoming a private investigator could be a great career choice for you.  Many organisations around the country offer intensive training programmes, although the reality is you won’t know how good you are, or whether it was a wise choice, until you do it.

Khalid Mahmood, MP for Perry Barr in Birmingham, called for cameras to be used more widely, just over two years on from 218 units being removed from the area.  They were billed to be fighting the ‘War on Terror,’ and were situated in a mainly Muslim community, but led to little more than strained community relations.  However, the conviction of three Birmingham men last week on conspiracy to commit terror offences has inspired Mr Mahmood, who claims that this conviction emphasises the need for every possible security measure to be taken, to speak out.

Speaking to the BBC earlier today, Mr Mahmood said, “This is a case again highlighting how serious these issues are.  There is a resource that could have been used, perhaps to deter them [the convicted men], that hasn’t been used, it is important for us to ensure we have the best possible tools to support the police, security services, and the local community.”

The MP’s comments have caused controversy within his constituency, and as always, when it comes to matters of public video surveillance, opinion is divided.  For every person who adopts the “if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear” approach, another feels that their privacy is being compromised.

It is a debate that will last forever, and is likely set to intensify in the UK as the Government looks to push through laws that will allow the police and security services to access e-mails and more in-depth telephone records than ever before.

Both sides of the fence have their merits.  Yes, if you have nothing to hide then you have nothing to fear, but does that mean we are happy with people potentially having access to sensitive information about us?

For the population of the UK, having Big Brother watching you is likely to become second nature in the future, especially as MP’s will use terrorism as the justification for increases in both video and audio surveillance.

The circumstances might be the same, they might be somewhat different, but having the ability to see what someone is doing on a laptop computer, whether a child, a partner, an employee or someone else, can potentially help to get the answers you are looking for.  This USB computer monitor will help you do that.

While we managed to find a number of benefits to the Android phone tracker, the fatal flaw ultimately served to let it down.  How did the computer variant fare?

One big positive is that it isn’t a case of ‘one licence, one device’ as it is for so many examples of software; this can be put onto any number of systems.  Therefore, if an employer wanted to keep an eye on all of his ‘fleet’ used by his team, he would be able to do so with the one device.  Similarly, if you have six kids, all with a laptop, you’re onto a winner.

What does it do?

Almost everything is the answer.  While it only saves sporadic screenshots of activity, the keystroke recording aspect means that you aren’t going to be missing anything.  Importantly, it works even when ‘In Private’ browsing tools have been utilised, so you will always be a step ahead of whomever you are monitoring.  Whole conversations from instant messaging programs such as Skype, for example, save fully, and it also monitors programs launched and anything downloaded to a laptop.

The flaw with the phone monitor was that you actually needed the phone with you to make it work.

Thankfully, there is no such problem with this spy gadget, although you do need to be able to access the laptop at some stage.  All you do is plug it in; it installs in ONE SECOND, and then you unplug it.  When you wish to view the data, simply place the USB into your computer, and the data from any device you want will be sent remotely to your selected e-mail address.

The Verdict

If there is a problem with this surveillance tool, it is that, like the Android phone version, it is only compatible with Windows laptops.  If you were considering Mac Books for your employees or kids it might be time to think again.

Overall, this USB computer monitor offers a much more practical and well-rounded solution to the phone variant, although whether you need it will depend on who you are monitoring, and how much they use their laptop.

This Android Data Recovery Device enables users to do just that, meaning that anyone can get a clear picture of exactly what a mobile handset has been used for.  Who might use this?

• Business owners who believe their company phones are being misused or abused.
• Suspicious individuals who think their partner may be cheating.
• Parents worried about the content their children access on their phone or the manner of messages they send or receive.

As you can see, this spy camera is potentially useful to many people.  What can it do?

Using this Android Data Recovery Device, you can look at anything that has been deleted from a mobile handset, from text messages and e-mails right down to internet history and even photographs that have been taken and subsequently wiped, even if they were on the device’s SD card!  The only thing you can’t do is actually listen to someone on a call.

Whenever you want to access the data, you simply plug it into a USB drive, and it will bring all of the deleted data onto your PC, enabling you to read deleted texts, e-mails, appointments, and much more.  The data stick leaves no trace on the host PC, either, so no-one would know you have been looking.

All good so far?  It certainly seems so, but there is one fatal flaw with the product.

You need to have the handset with you to use it.

So far as a secret spy and surveillance device goes, it renders it a little meaningless.  Of course, if it is your child’s phone then this will be easy enough to achieve, but it would be somewhat difficult to hide your suspicion of a partner, for example, if you are actively taking their phone and plugging it into a PC with a strange looking USB device.

Nevertheless, it remains a useful tool, just be sure that you’re going to be able to use it!