WASHINGTON – Credit unions now have another potential question from members that they never thought they would have to answer: Is my credit card listening to me?
According to a new report, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is outfitting agents, presumably undercover, with audio-video recorders camouflaged to look like everyday credit cards.
A CU Daily review found numerous credit card sized and credit card disguised audio recording devices available for sale online.
“Covert audio/video devices must match the form factor of a United States credit card and other common form factors of that size and be able to accept a printed overlay that is detailed enough to be able to pass a close visual inspection,” states a summary of the September 12 purchase order, The Independent reported. “The card must be able to be disguised by printing of specific artwork directly on the card. Physical dimensions can be no more than 85 x 54 x 1.5 mm, 34 x 2 x 0.05 inches; weight < 5 g.”
The J&A
The Independent further reported that a so-called J&A among the tranche of paperwork attached to the purchase — a “justification and approval” from higher-ups to issue a contract to a specific seller without putting it out for competitive bids — “says the Bond-esque gadgets will be coming from a Swiss company called Nagra.”
“Tested another vendor’s product that was similar but when the design was printed on the card, it was not a clear print and the ink was able to be rubbed off,” the J&A explains, The Independent said.
Card Recorders Ordered
According to the report, the DEA is buying 57 credit-card recorders in all: 30 with model codes indicating both audio and video capabilities, and 27 with model codes indicating they are audio-only. Both come with 16GB of memory, a built-in mono microphone, and a lithium battery pack.
It is unclear how much the DEA is spending on the devices, but the J&A was made public — a requirement for all purchases exceeding $25,000, the report added, noting the cards will be shipped to the agency’s Office of Investigative Technology in Lorton, Va., according to the documentation.
