Why would Dell be shipping Inspiron 600m laptops with integrated hardware keyloggers? Why are the keyloggers hard-wired to the Ethernet port? Where are these keyloggers sending their data? And why would the Secret Service refuse FOIA requests about it?
Update: The answer is, they probably wouldn’t. This is most likely fake. The images appear to have been taken from here, and the letter from Homeland Security is a pretty decent Photoshop job based on this.
However, Dell has been asking customers what they plan to use their computers for, claiming they are required to do so by the PATRIOT Act.
Finally, does your laptop contain a keylogger? If you’re feeling adventurous, open it up, look around, and report back. If you find one, pictures would be really nice.
Update 18 June: Snopes has picked this one up as well. And my request for pictures of a keylogger in your laptop still stands…
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Dan
Jun 18, 2005
Rediculous. You can even see the blurred title of “The Honorable Louise Slaughter” if you compare them side by side.
If I was gonn go to the trouble to fake something like that, I’d at least have copied and pasted letters already in that scan… the text resolution in the body is totally different then the header.
Fiona
Jun 20, 2005
When I bought my dell laptop 2 years ago (in Australia) I got asked some crap about not using it to do with weapons, and was told i couldn’t use or resell it or something in Afghanistan and some other countries.
Andy
Jun 20, 2005
Dell isn’t the only company subject to U.S. tech export laws. They’re just the most responsible about following them.
LcF
Jun 22, 2005
I think it is a hoax.
http://www.engadget.com/2005/06/16/the-dell-keylogger-conspiracy-hoax/
Max
Jun 23, 2005
Well, whenever I come across a conspiracy theory I am instantly skeptical. The first thing I noticed was the description of the circuit board. While the chips mentioned are probably fully real, the detail of description makes it sound to me like an attempt to confuse.
Then I looked at the attached letter. This is the clencher, look at the letterhead. Pay close attention to the symbol. First of all the symbol has no visible writing on it. I also didn’t think it looked like a government symbol. To verify this I simply went to the Department of Homeland Security website (find it using google). Look in the upper right hand corner of the page. Do you see a resemblance to the symbol on the letter? I don’t…
Furthermore, to finalize it completely, look at the “letter” again. Under “Department of Homeland Security” on the letter head “United States Secret Service” is written. The Secret Service (I just realized the initials of the Secret Service is SS, that’s a little scary…) is in NO WAY affiliated with Freedom of Information online. The Secret Service, or as I will refer to them from now on, the SS has 2 and only 2 jobs. The obvious one being protecting high level political figures, i.e. the President, and the lesser known one being combatting counterfeit money. A letter concerning computer information freedom would have come from Andy Purdy, the IAIP National Cyber Security Director, assuming it came from a high level politician (I call BS on that one).
So here is my conclusion, it’s as likely for this to be true as ice cream in Hell, as Jamie Hyneman says, this myth is busted. Any way you want to put it, in my mind at least, there is absolutely no way this is true. So rest easy, big brother may be watching but not by keyloggers in laptops.
Josh
Jun 23, 2005
Another similarity between the letters – that shouldn’t be there: both have the exact same file ID, 20050112-20050119.
Doing a little more research, I found that the symbol in the upper left belongs to none other then the US Secret Service.
Jun 25, 2005
.tHE pRODUCT
Jess
Jun 25, 2005
I used to work in a large communications company that provided Dell customer with 3 months free of iternet or other promotion if they used our service. So DELL was providing us with CC(Credit card) numbers without customers consent/permission unfortunatly these people were pissed because they only provided Dell with CC # for purchasing PC and Dell just apoligized but that doesnt solve the problem……Now where does this fit in…..It is extremely possible that DELL is putting Keyloggers or tracers into peoples computers I have friends in family into media and so far what they see is truth but it is just the begginning……..I live in canada so unfortuantly we arent covered by freedom of information act but the way things are going we may be soon or in future……Fo all of you that think you are fine and dandy I be watchful until we can figure out this one but like I said so far few things have matched and shown truth………Dont want to believe then go back to bed and dont go pass go and drink coffee just live in dream world but Im not gonna sit here and BS people………………………..
Jess
Jun 25, 2005
Making a formal complaint and having media look into it is not good buisness for Dell. Unfortunatly if this is false why arent their lawyers(like any large company) suing for Slander as well as frauding a signature or using it for fraudulent purposes. every company is based on income and without customer there is nothing and remeber this when you have a bad expierence you tell people as well you remeber it for 12 years as to a good expierence last 4-5 years in memory. Last thing there is truth to this story as well as Bs and I will post and let people know the final verdict as everything should be wrapped up by the end of the month max……….
Never fight with an idiot folks might not be able to tell the difference!!
Matt
Jul 31, 2005
I would be as willing to be as sceptical as the rest of you. However the most cogent point raised by the sceptics is that the Secret Service is nothing to do with the Department for Homeland Security, this is entirely WRONG.
As of 2003 the Secret Service was incorporated into the Department for Homeland Security under the 2002 passage of the Homeland Security Bill!!! [check the secret service website!]
Also if the author of this article were to make a request for information it would go to the Secret service. As “computer fraud” is a part of their mandate
see below:
“The United States Secret Service is mandated by statute and executive order to carry out two significant missions: protection and criminal investigations. The Secret Service protects the President and Vice President, their families, heads of state, and other designated individuals; investigates threats against these protectees; protects the White House, Vice President’s Residence, Foreign Missions, and other buildings within Washington, D.C.; and plans and implements security designs for designated National Special Security Events. The Secret Service also investigates violations of laws relating to counterfeiting of obligations and securities of the United States; financial crimes that include, but are not limited to, access device fraud, financial institution fraud, identity theft, computer fraud; and computer-based attacks on our nation’s financial, banking, and telecommunications infrastructure.”
-http://www.secretservice.gov/mission.shtml
Therefore everything within the article is at the very least, technicaly true. This article is either true, or a very well researched hoax.
The only “possible mistake”, is that the “file numbers” shown in the letter, are actually meant to refer to the specific Secret Service files requested. The “file number” is NOT a reference number which corresponds to the “applicants” Freedom of Information Act [FOIA] request (an error that could have easily been made by a hoaxer).
According to what I have found these file numbers actually refer to Secret Service press pass files, concerning some sort of White House security scandal, see:
[for story]http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/5/16/9539/40363
[for ref. to file numbers and contents]
On the balance of probabilities I would say this is probably a hoax due to the file number discrepencies.
However, I could be wrong!
If this is some sort of hoaxing joke, what would be the point of going to so much effort?
But I still think it would be cool if it were true though!!!! :>
Theo
Aug 03, 2005
Hi all
Someone told us this internet hoax was getting some attention.
Although the pictures shown are of the first KeyGhost Hardware Keylogger device, they have been lifted from a product review done back in March 2000.
Anyone that has taken time to open up their laptop will find that there is very little space to fit anything else inside, let alone a keylogger circuit of that size.
Facts about our hardware keyloggers for PS/2 keyboards, and the world’s first USB hardware keylogger (for PC and Mac) is available here:
http://www.keyghost.com
Giorgio Bucho
Sep 11, 2006
Well, the way I see it, it wouldn’t make sense to put a circuit that size and that obvious inside people’s laptops (hey, we’re talking government here, not a high school project). Therefore, I assume that if there are keyloggers on computers, they should be embedded on the motherboard, probably wiring the APIC and the DMA controller (so you can trap anything, not just keyboard events). Trapping IRQ calls would be a way to monitor events going on with no software support (therefore, it is SO independent). Who ever went to the trouble of reverse engineering motherboards ? This whole thing could be packed on a single chip on the motherboard, or even be on the firmware of the motherboard. Wiring the DMA controller would give the mechanism access to any portion of the system’s RAM (possibiliies here are endless). Too good to be true ? Maybe… but… remember http://www.eff.org/wp/investigating-machine-identification-code-technology-color-laser-printers ?
Brent
Nov 28, 2006
This is one of the goofiest things I have ever heard. I have been working on laptops for the last 4 years and have never seen anything similar to this. First of all, why would the department of Homeland Security bother putting such a jerry-rigged device in new laptops considering that any time any laptop was taken apart the technician would ask questions. Second of all, any network administrator who is at all concerned with security measures would notice huge amounts of increased traffic on the network since hundreds of computers would start “calling home.” This would appear as if each and every one of the laptops were compromised from the network administrators point of view and questions would be asked. Third, why would Homeland Security be interested in the useless garbled nonsense of millions of monkeys chattering away on keyboards and where would they store all of that data? If they are, and I am not saying they aren’t, collecting data, there are much more efficient ways to collect data than with key loggers that can actually be useful to them. The only reason they would resort to key loggers would be if they were trying to “break” into your hotmail account and read your spam.
Ivan DelValle
Dec 02, 2010
The keylogger is in the driver that makes your keyboard work!!
Ivan DelValle
Dec 02, 2010
They watch my every move…thats not good for business reasons …7 years later.
Ivan DelValle
Dec 02, 2010
Your computer is a all the micro chips needed for anything…all it takes is the software to make it do anything. And software/programs come in updates, drivers, email attatchments…and many other ways.