This section highlights products that are readily available online. Although everything we discuss can be used for legitimate purposes, it’s a bit frightening to think about what happens when these items are used for illegal purposes.

The small device shown in Figure A.1 is a keystroke logger. It can be purchased on the Internet for as little as $50. This device is placed on the back of the computer between the keyboard and where the keyboard plugs in. There are many varieties of keystroke loggers; prices generally vary based on how many keystrokes the device can record. Keystrokes can also be logged via software that allows retrieval from anywhere. However, these devices usually require the user to retrieve the recorded data using the same computer on which the device was installed. This $50 device can record around 131,000 keystrokes, enough to easily obtain passwords to email and financial accounts. Other devices can record volumes of data.

Figure A.1 Keystroke logger

The following products can be found at www.PIMall.com:

•  A high-resolution covert camera can be hidden in a book’s spine so that someone can appear to be reading, but actually be recording. The book can be placed on a shelf and set to automatically record whenever motion is detected.

•  A digital clock with covert camera is widely available on the Internet. The camera records to an internal memory card, and is available in black and white ($500) or full color ($600).

•  What looks like a children’s boom box of a popular children’s character is actually a full-color covert camera that sells online for about $600. It is sold as a “nanny spy”.

•  A pen can actually conceal a hidden camera and is widely available on the Internet.

The site, www.chatcheaters.com, is just one of several sites designed to give suspicious partners easy access to surveillance equipment and online spying resources. It was begun by John LaSage of California, whose wife of 23 years left him to join a New Zealand man she met online. According to site statistics, ChatCheaters averages 400 visitors a day.

The site, InfidelityCheck.org, offers even more tools and resources for suspicious partners.

A cell phone SIM card extractor and can be purchased for about $150 on the Internet at www.dynaspy.com. The SIM card is where much of a cell phone’s data is stored. In a matter of minutes, the SIM card can be removed from a cell phone, attached to this portable device, plugged into a computer’s USB port, and the data extracted.

A tiny device called a credit card skimmer is used by thieves to sweep the barcode information from credit cards for later fraudulent use. (It’s no bigger than a cigarette lighter.) These skimmers are extremely portable and cheap to come by. Some states have begun to introduce legislation making the possession of a credit card skimmer illegal. These devices can capture data at several different points. Also, some skimmer devices are designed specifically to fit over ATM and credit card machines. These are difficult to spot. You should look for anything mounted near where you would type in your PIN in case there is a hidden camera in it (a brochure holder, for example). Also, always look at the device you are skimming your card through. If anything looks unusual, notify the police and ask them to check it out. It is not uncommon for employees to be involved in the skimming operation, so be careful who you report it to.

Be especially aware when using standalone ATMs at convenience stores. These are especially prone to skimming devices, as are gas pumps. Be alert!

Many credit card companies are now issuing “smart cards” that can be “swiped” just by holding them up against an RFID (radio frequency identification) reader. (This device is no bigger than a walkie-talkie.) Despite the credit card companies’ assertions that they have used the highest level of encryption allowed by the U.S. Government, questions continue to be raised about how secure these smart cards really are.

In March of 2008, a video began circulating around the Internet that originated on BoingBoingTV. It showed an episode about a device that can be purchased from eBay for $8 that’s used to read the RFID information on credit cards. We looked and were able to find RFID readers in the range of $20 for standard readers ($300 for ones that come with a boost antenna).

Granted, you’re more likely to have your credit card information stolen from an online transaction than someone bumping up against your wallet with a remote reader. However, with the right antenna, it wouldn’t be impossible for someone to be able to read all the RFID information in a room of people from a distance.