In January this year, the surveillance world received some interesting news that no one seems to have picked up on. Scientists in Germany have created the most sensitive listening piece ever invented: a gold sphere just 60 nanometres in diameter. Incredibly, this is the equivalent to 60 billionths of a metre!) The creation reacts to soundwaves and detects noises down to minus 60 decibels, and is just sensitive enough to hear the sounds made by bacteria suspended in water.
There is no need to go into the scientific details and implications here; there are plenty of articles around already doing that. What we will say, however, is that this is a huge leap forward in nanotechnology, and such technology has always been linked to a range of fields other than medical – surveillance included.
Covert equipment like listening recorders, bugs and video cameras have taken huge leaps forward over the past decade, thanks to technological advances like the ability to cram hugely powerful processors into smaller and smaller chips. For example, you can find high-definition surveillance cameras that measure in at less than a centimetre long and half a centimetre wide. The proliferation of fast wireless technology has made it possible for conversations to be overheard from cities and continents away.
Imagine taking the incredibly powerful, sensitive technology we have now and scaling it down to the size of a human blood cell. It seems nanotechnology is not so far off doing exactly that. At SCIA, we look to the future and wonder about what corporate security and surveillance implications might come from this amazing new technology.
Counter-surveillance is an ever-changing industry. Although listening devices the size of dust mites are probably a long way off, at SCIA we believe in keeping up to date on any changes that might be heading our way.
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