13 hours ago
Warning over surveillance tactic leaving entire US neighborhoods in terror: Check your yard NOW
A woman in New York discovered a phone buried in her lawn, and police warn it was no accident; it's the latest terrifying surveillance scheme sweeping across the US.
Mary Kehoe of Queens found the strange black box sticking out of the ground in late May. It turned out to be a smartphone that had been covered up with tape and connected to a portable charger.
Only the phone's camera was left uncovered, and the New York Police Department (NYPD) said criminals in multiple states have been doing this to illegally spy on unsuspecting neighborhoods.
Their goal is to figure out the habits and patterns of the residents in these neighborhoods so burglars know when to break into their homes.
In Kehoe's case, the phone would have been recording when she and her neighbors leave their homes, when they return, and when the street is quiet, so no one sees a robbery attempt.
Police added that New York isn't the only target of this new scheme. Hidden cameras have been found in shrubs and potted plants in California, Massachusetts, and New Jersey as well.
Sergeant Vahe Abramyan of the Glendale Police Department in California said: 'It could be any type of camera that is digital and wireless. It could be cheap; it could be expensive.'
Abramyan added that criminals can easily buy these camera phones on Amazon or Best Buy. The only catch is that they have to go back and retrieve their buried phone before committing the burglary.
'Why us? I had lots of things going through my head as to why they chose our lawn, but I realized we are in the middle of the block,' Kehoe told CBS News.
The NYPD noted that they are still looking for the person or group who planted the phone on her lawn.
In California, authorities have responded to multiple cases of unlawful surveillance popping up in local neighborhoods and made several arrests.
In Garden Grove, an observant resident spotted a hidden camera in her neighbor's bush. The device was connected to a battery pack, and both were disguised as trash and had been pointed at her home across the street.
Local police haven't made any arrests in that case yet and urged residents to stay vigilant.
In Glendale, however, four men were arrested on May 20 after officers discovered a video surveillance camera with a portable battery charging pack during a routine traffic stop.
That camera was wrapped in fake leaves, and police said they found a nearby planter with freshly disturbed dirt, leading them to suspect that the camera had just been pulled so the group could plan their burglary.
Police also recovered storage boxes meant to hold jewelry and phony construction gear and clothing, so the group would be mistaken for a local work crew.
James Knight, who has 25 years of experience in the field of digital security, told that schemes like this rely on tech that can be easily connected to their owners.
'Thieves that use these for surveillance do open themselves up to being tracked down and caught. They have to connect into them from somewhere, or have them call back to somewhere, which is all traceable,' the cyber warfare expert explained.
Despite the drawbacks, Knight said phones are some of the cheapest items crooks can use against their victims for surveillance, eavesdropping, and stealing signals.
This makes it a low-cost hack for criminals hoping to learn everything about an entire neighborhood without actually being there.
Kehoe said after the camera was discovered that her neighborhood is banding together to keep an eye on each other's homes while they are out of town.
'Don't come back to our neighborhood or any neighborhood because we are now watching, and all the other neighborhoods are aware of what is going on,' she said.
While police in New York and California are both urging homeowners to watch out for strange objects in their yards, Knight revealed a few high-tech tips that can prevent your home from becoming the next target of this scheme.
'Installing visible security cameras and motion-detecting lights will likely deter burglars. If the light goes on, they won't want to plant a device where they can easily be seen, as opposed to doing it in the dark,' the cybersecurity expert for said.
Also, making sure that your home is secured with high-quality locks on all doors and windows may sound simple, but Knight said it's an often overlooked step.
The pen-tester, who assesses the physical and digital defenses of major corporations, noted that even big-name businesses underestimate a thief's ability to take advantage of a tiny vulnerability.
'People thinking that people will never try something or find a weakness only they know of is not accurate and is exactly the thing that will be found,' Knight said.
