Were alleged Russian spies undone by technology problems?
Password security needed improvement, too By Michael HardyJul 01, 2010 What’s Russian for “geek?” The recently busted alleged Russian spy ring apparently was in serious need of tech support, according to published reports. Their problems included misconfigured wireless networks, users writing passwords on slips of paper and laptop help desk issues, wrote reporter Tim Greene in Network World. “One of the most glaring errors made by one of the spy defendants was leaving an imposing 27-character password written on a piece of paper that law enforcement officers found while searching a suspect’s home,” Greene reported. “They used the password to crack open a treasure trove of more than 100 text files containing covert messages used to further the investigation.” The password gave investigators access to the alleged spies’ steganography program, a sophisticated technology used to hide messages in digital files and retrieve them over the Web. Using steganography, for example, a spy could emb
