Targeted digital surveillance is the targeted collection and analysis of digital data and communications.
Extremely advanced techniques exist[1] in the arsenal of nation-State actors, but the focus here is on techniques that are more likely to be used against anarchists and other rebels.
See the “Digital surveillance” topic.
Used in tactics: Incrimination
Sub-techniques
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Targeted digital surveillance | ||
| Authentication bypass | Authentication bypass is the process by which an adversary bypasses the Full Disk Encryption that protects access to a digital device. An adversary can achieve authentication bypass through human error, weak passwords, or technical exploits. | |
| IMSI-catcher | An IMSI-catcher (also known as a Stingray) is a device used to collect information about all mobile phones that are turned on in a limited area (from a few meters to several hundred meters) around it. A passive IMSI-catcher simply listens to the traffic, while an active IMSI-catcher acts as a “fake” cell tower between the phones and the legitimate cell towers. | |
| Malware | Malware is malicious software installed on a digital device such as a computer, server, or mobile phone, to compromise the device. Malware can do many different things, but against anarchists and other rebels, it typically aims to gain visibility into the compromised device through remote screen capture and remote keylogging (recording the keys pressed on a keyboard), and to track the location of the device (in the case of phones). | |
| Network forensics | Network forensics is the monitoring and analysis of network traffic. | |
| Physical access | Physical access is the process by which an adversary physically accesses an electronic device in order to access its data or compromise it. | |