iPod used as data stealing tool in Indian corporate espionage

In a rather bizarre example of corporate espionage, an iPod was used to steal data…in India. Investigators found that an iPod was used to beat a rival bid for a lucrative construction contract.

According to the Times of India, a construction firm was baffled at the close margin its bid for a tender lost. They figured it improbable that the winner of the contract could have come up with a sum so close to theirs, as if the rival had known the figure to beat. Which was precisely the situation.

Investigations proved their suspicions correct – the documents had been leaked and soon the search was on to find the spy in their midst. Few were aware of the tender details and these were the most trusted individuals in the firm. Never had there been such an incident in the company’s history either.

Soon forensic tests revealed that a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port had been used to access the documents and from tests discovered the data had been downloaded…to an iPod. Said data was then passed on and sold to the rival company for a price, the data deleted from the iPod. But investigators managed to retrieve it with advanced software.

A similar case had also occurred where an IT company found its software source code stolen, an iPod also used to download the code and spread it to pirates. Neither case was publicized mentioning the companies’ names, however.

"I cannot name the company as I am bound by a non-discloser agreement . Not lodging a complaint was a conscious decision. After a call centre , which had an account in an international bank, lodged a complaint, there was concern about safety of the data in India. It can happen everywhere ,” said Murali Mohan, the advocate representing said company.

Despite the incident, it seemed the company involved hadn’t learned anything about enforcing more security.  "A day after discovering that an iPod was used for theft, I entered the same office with an iPod. Nobody stopped me,” laughed Murali Mohan.

So when even iPods can be used to steal data, it might soon herald a day when iPod users are persona non grata in firms with sensitive data to protect.

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