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Persian Gulf nations like Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and Qatar previously turned to private firms — including Israeli and American contractors — to hack rivals and, increasingly, their own citizens. The development of ToTok, experts said, showed that the governments can cut out the intermediary to spy directly on their targets, who voluntarily, if unwittingly, hand over their information.
A technical analysis and interviews with computer security experts showed that the firm behind ToTok, Breej Holding, is most likely a front company affiliated with DarkMatter, an Abu Dhabi-based cyberintelligence and hacking firm where Emirati intelligence officials, former National Security Agency employees and former Israeli military intelligence operatives work. DarkMatter is under F. The U. Its ruling family promotes the country as an example of a modern, moderate Arab nation, but it has also been at the forefront of using surveillance technology to crack down on internal dissent — including hacking Western journalists, emptying the banking accounts of critics, and holding human rights activists in prolonged solitary confinement over Facebook posts.
The government blocks specific functions of apps like WhatsApp and Skype, a reality that has made ToTok particularly appealing in the country. Huawei, the Chinese telecom giant, recently promoted ToTok in advertisements. Spokesmen for the C. Calls to a phone number for Breej Holding rang unanswered, and Pax employees did not respond to emails and messages.
With a simple webcam (either built-in or external) and a second Skype account, you can turn your webcam on remotely at any time to monitor. If your pet hates to be alone -- or you just like checking in on your animals throughout the day -- you don't need to buy a fancy security camera. All.
On Thursday, Google removed the app from its Play store after determining ToTok violated unspecified policies. Apple removed ToTok from its App Store on Friday and was still researching the app, a spokesman said. ToTok users who already downloaded the app will still be able to use it until they remove it from their phones.
It was unclear when American intelligence services first determined that ToTok was a tool of Emirati intelligence, but one person familiar with the assessment said that American officials have warned some allies about its dangers.
It is not clear whether American officials have confronted their counterparts in the Emirati government about the app. One digital security expert in the Middle East, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss powerful hacking tools, said that senior Emirati officials told him that ToTok was indeed an app developed to track its users in the Emirates and beyond. ToTok appears to have been relatively easy to develop, according to a forensic analysis performed for The Times by Patrick Wardle, a former National Security Agency hacker who works as a private security researcher.
It appears to be a copy of a Chinese messaging app offering free video calls, YeeCall, slightly customized for English and Arabic audiences.
Many users do not wish the continuous exposure for which webcams were originally intended, but rather prefer privacy. Changing the default camera on Skype After you've gotten your phone to work as a webcam using DroidCam or EpocCam , you need to change the settings in Skype before you can use your phone as a webcam. Both videophone calls and videoconferencing are also now commonly referred to as a video link. This is usually the way to choose a camera if you're using a Mac computer and don't want to use the default, built-in device. You can also use your phone as a webcam to make video calls from a computer. For example, Apple 's iSight camera, which is built into Apple laptops, iMacs and a number of iPhones , can be used for video chat sessions, using the iChat instant messaging program now called Messages.
It hunts for new contacts any time a user opens the app, under the pretense that it is helping connect with their friends, much like how Instagram flags Facebook friends. Even its name is an apparent play on the popular Chinese app TikTok. Wardle, now a security researcher at Jamf, a software company.
By uploading contacts, video chats, location, what more intelligence do you need? In an intelligence-gathering operation, Mr. Wardle said, ToTok would be Phase 1. You don't have to disable your internal webcam before installing the USB webcam. In most programs, you can choose which of the two webcams to use from the software's settings.
Similar settings exist in most programs that support webcams, including Google's Hangouts and Apple's Facetime.
This is usually the way to choose a camera if you're using a Mac computer and don't want to use the default, built-in device. If you choose to use only your external webcam from this point forward, remove the software that came with and managed your old webcam and install new software to go with the new webcam. If the software came with a program you can use to uninstall it, run that application and follow the instructions.
Otherwise, you can use Windows' software management tools to remove the software.
To do so, click the Start Menu and click "Settings. Click the program you want to uninstall. An "Uninstall" button should pop up.
Click it. Click the "Uninstall" button in the pop-up message to confirm you wish to remove the program from your computer. If you're not actively using a webcam, you may want to disable it in software or physically cover it for your security.
Some malware can hijack your webcam to spy on you while you're using your computer or doing other things nearby. You can either disable the webcam using the software menu, physically cover it or both.
Use opaque tape to cover the webcam or purchase a shutter to cover it if it doesn't come with one. Living in Canada, Andrew Aarons has been writing professionally since