Learn NSA Secrets for Search
June 4, 2013
Wired reports that just about anyone can become a Sherlock Holmes of sorts and uncover intelligence hidden within the Internet. The article, “Use These Secret NSA Google Search Tips to Become Your Own Spy Agency” shares the link to a 643 page book written for NSA cyber spies. Untangling the Web: A Guide to Internet Research is a PDF file and was released by NSA after MuckRock filed a FOIA request.
The book was published by the Center for Digital Content of the National Security Agency. Not only does it cover tips and tricks for search engines but it also delves into the Internet Archive and other online tools.
The article calls attention to the chapter entitled Google Hacking:
“Say you’re a cyber spy for the NSA and you want sensitive inside information on companies in South Africa. What do you do? Search for confidential Excel spreadsheets the company inadvertently posted online by typing “filetype:xls site:za confidential” into Google, the book notes. Want to find spreadsheets full of passwords in Russia? Type “filetype:xls site:ru login.” Even on websites written in non-English languages the terms “login,” “userid,” and “password” are generally written in English, the authors helpfully point out.”
This interesting how-to will likely garner quite a bit of attention but as the article points out, this is not new information. Johnny Long’s Google Hacking covers similar topics but and the author of the NSA guide acknowledges this; however, the author also points out that (dissimilar to Long’s perspective) cracking websites and servers is not encouraged.
Megan Feil, June 04, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Beyond Search
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