Iran Say it Has Captured “Western Spies” Involved in Nuclear Cyberattack

Late last month it was revealed that Iran’s first nuclear plant underwent a shocking and sophisticated cyberattack which was designed to break its fuel enrichment centrifuges. The Stuxnet worm reportedly succeeded in temporarily hindering plant operations, infecting hundreds of plant computers. However, the worm turned out to be overly virulent, spreading to thousands of other plant computers worldwide and drawing attention. Israel is suspected of the attack, according to a senior source quoted in a report by The New York Times.

Now Iran’s intelligence minister, Heydar Moslehi, who accused western “spy services” of the attack, has claimed on Iranian state television and the Mehr news service that his forces had captured “several spies”.

He accused western nations (presumably the U.S. and Europe) of engaging in “destructive activities of the arrogance in cyberspace”.

CCTV site Internet Eyes hopes to help catch criminals

A website which pays the public to monitor live commercial CCTV footage online has been launched in Devon. Internet Eyes will pay up to £1,000 to subscribers who regularly report suspicious activity such as shoplifting. Managing director Tony Morgan said the scheme would reduce crime and help prevent other anti-social behaviour.

But civil liberties campaigners say the idea is "distasteful" and encourages private citizens to spy on each other. The private company intends to stream live footage to subscribers' home computers from CCTV cameras installed in streets, shops and other businesses.

Mr Morgan said: "The subscribers will have access to four screens at the same time and if they see anything suspicious, they can press the 'alert' button. This then sends an instant text and picture message to the shop assistant or manager - who then makes the decision about what action to take."

He said more than 13,000 people had indicated their interest in the project but he expected more people to join "once they had something to watch".

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has allowed the company to launch its beta site after it agreed to a number of changes, including only allowing subscribers aged 18 and over to access the site.

CCTV's Charles Farrier called the scheme a "profit-making gimmick" and told the BBC he feared that people would take copies of the livestream and upload them to file-sharing networks.

He added this is encouraging a growing trend of citizen spies. If people are so concerned about crime, they should contact the police.

Although the CCTV cameras are based in stores across the UK, the rewards are open to anyone from the European Union who is registered with the site.

"They are hiding behind computer screens and willing crime to happen so they get a prize. It is a game."

One subscriber, Paul from Hammersmith, told the BBC News website he thought it was his civic duty to sign up.

Utah residents fear ‘Israeli art students’ prying into NSA data center

A local ABC affiliate in Salt Lake City, Utah has caused a stir online with a report suggesting that self-proclaimed Israeli art students, peddling their artwork from door to door, have been asking disturbing questions about plans to build an NSA data center in the area.

"These salespeople say they're Israeli students," ABC4 reporter Brent Hunsaker explained. "They even produce Israeli passports. They say they're selling their own artwork to raise money to open a gallery. So why would the Israeli art students want to know about the National Security Agency?"

According to Hunsaker, warnings about the students are being spread through blogs and church bulletins. One bulletin sent out to Mormon women even claimed that "federal law enforcement groups are actually investigating their ties to organized crime and terrorist groups."

The basis for the suspicions goes back to 2002, when a lengthy article at Salon described how Drug Enforcement Agency field offices were reporting that "young Israelis claiming to be art students and offering artwork for sale had been attempting to penetrate DEA offices for over a year. The Israelis had also attempted to penetrate the offices of other law enforcement and Department of Defense agencies."