Hello, I’ve read that Microsoft was involved into a new spying scandal and the press says that the company has helped NSA to spy on users of their popular email and messenger services. Do you know something about that and how can I protect my privacy, if I’m using Skype?
For starters, it should be mentioned that once these GPS jammer devices are created, they are tested. With all the necessary tests such as transmitted frequencies, battery life and so on, the scrambling range is also tested. And these devices are most often tested on empty ground – this is why manufacturers are still demanding more reach than reality. It is obvious that the range is wider when there are no different buildings and concrete structures. But the fact is that most of us live in big cities and we are often surrounded by tall buildings. This explains why you should not be surprised if the blocking device you have can not block the signal from a phone located 20 meters away from you
There may be many reasons for this, but the most reasonable thing should be that the buildings make the beach smaller as obstacles.
Certainly, there are many types of signal jammers available on the market, so if you want to block any signal in a very wide range, then you will spend a small fortune on one of these devices. However, if you have a tight budget and will not be able to buy an expensive scrambling device, then you can get one of these low power devices. And they have a really decent work range, especially if your main goal is to block people in the surrounding areas. In this case, I think that a real range of about 5 meters will be enough, especially when you use it on the bus and you want people to be quiet for a few minutes. Then a signal jammer like this will definitely be useful.
Also, Microsoft has a full access to your chat history and it uses it. We’ve already written about Skype intercepting HTTPS links in chat logs at our security blogs. As you know, Microsoft is American company and it is obliged to provide information about its users to FBI and NSA, if they have a special warrant. But recently, Edvard Snowden told that Microsoft with all their messenger services was a part of a PRISM project. So, government was probably able to read your private correspondence and listen to your Skype calls