More CIA Spy Devices

The CIA’s new website has revealed a whole host of spy equipment devices that have been used over the years – as well as a few more interesting ideas that haven’t.

One particularly ingenious piece of technology is the letter removal device that was used during World War II. This allowed the user to extract a letter from its envelope and replace it without the receiver knowing about it. It worked via pincers that gripped the letter and rolled it up tightly so that it could be extracted without breaking the seal of the envelope. Having read the correspondence, the CIA operative could then roll the letter back up and replace it.

Different forms of cameras are unsurprisingly common tools. It is easy to guess the size and purpose of the matchbox camera, for example. Similarly, the tobacco pouch camera was a useful tool in its time.

The microdot camera was slightly different, however. This allowed for whole pages of information to be photographed and the film produced to be just the size of a full stop. Indeed, film was often sent embedded in a letter, although it could equally have been placed inside a hollow ring or coin.

CIA Website Reveals Spy Tools Of The Past

A new website launched by the CIA has shed light on some of the spying and surveillance tactics it has used over the years. The most striking tools are those that seem like they would have originated in a film script rather that the research and development department of a major security organisation.

One notable device is a radio-controlled catfish that was created in the Seventies. Effectively a small unmanned submarine, it could be used to get close to targets where it could gather information.

Similar was the ‘insectothopter,’ a precursor to the hummingbird drone that was displayed recently. However, the insectothopter was never used as cameras of the day were far too large for it to be feasible.

Instead, it seemed the agency made use of pigeon cameras, which were strapped to birds who then flew over enemy positions, the camera taking photographs at regular intervals. This is far removed from the spying tactics of today as the film then had to be developed before anything could be learned.

As well as the website, the CIA has set up a YouTube channel and a Flickr stream where you can take a look at the various spy gadgets that have been used over the years.

US Website Offering Secret Cameras To Schools Shut Down

A US website that offered spy cameras to school principals has been shut down by New York’s Education Department after concerns that taking photos of children without parents’ permission was not appropriate.

The site offered cameras hidden inside teddy bears and electric pencil sharpeners as well as men’s ties with cameras and microphones.

Albina Mazzferro, who has three children at a school where the principal had bought such products, said:

“It is strange to have cameras in a pencil sharpener. It makes me wonder why they would need it.”

At another school, an Exit Sign with a camera inside was bought for $200 and even the teachers were unaware of it.

One said:

“I’m kind of shocked. It means that [the principal is] spying on what are we doing in the hallways and in the classrooms and in the teachers’ lounge.”

The sale of such products has been criticised by civil liberties groups and a special commissioner has been tasked with investigating spy camera purchases by the Education Department.

Some have objected to the invasion of students’ privacy and others simply to that particular use of school funds.