For the last time, the U.S. military used a device called the SEEK II. The piece of tech was turned off and put away.
The device was purchased for $68 off of eBay by a German security researcher. That is not the only thing. Marx accidentally bought sensitive data on thousands of people for the low price of less than $70. According to a report from The New York Times, names, nationalities, photos, and detailed descriptions were included in the fingerprints and iris scans of more than two thousand people.
The memory card contained in the SEEK II that Marx ended up with was not removed by the Pentagon. The researcher said that the irresponsible handling of the technology was unbelievable. He said that the manufacturer and former military users don't care that used devices with sensitive data are being sold online.
According to the Times, most of the information contained in the SEEK II was collected on people the U.S. military wanted to kill. Others were simply civilians who had been stopped at checkpoint in the Middle East or people who had aided the U.S. government. If it were to end up in the wrong hands, the device and accompanying data would be particularly dangerous. The Taliban might want to find and punish people who worked with the U.S. forces.
The Department of Defense could not confirm or deny the authenticity of the data. The Times was given an address at Fort Belvoir in Virginia where the device should be returned to the military.
The Chaos Computer Club bought the SEEK II and five other devices from eBay. The group was going to analyze the machines for potential vulnerabilities after The Intercept reported on the Taliban taking military tech.
Marx was still concerned by the scope of what he found even though he had begun to assess the risk. In addition to the thousands identified on the single SEEK II device last used in Afghanistan, a second SEEK II purchased by CCC and last used in Jordan held data on U.S. troops.
Military hardware was never intended to be sold on the internet. The Defense Logistics Agency told the New York Times that the devices should have been destroyed when they were no longer being used. An email was sent from the DOD to Gizmodo. biometric devices are usually marked for demilitarization by the Services prior to deployment, and they would need to be destroyed by the Department of Defense upon return. She said that none of these items are available for retail. Gizmodo asked how Marx's machines could fall through the cracks, but did not get a response.
One of the sellers told the Times that the company bought the SEEK II at an auction of government equipment.
The listing of electronics with personal or identifiable information is against eBay policy, according to the New York Times. The company said that users who listed such items would face actions.
Multiple identical military devices are for sale on eBay. You can buy a border patrol surplus for just a few hundred dollars. The interest appears to be heating up, so act quickly.
There is a new update at 1:35 p.m. The post has been updated with a comment from a Department of Defense spokesman.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
