Kremlin security agency to buy typewriters 'to avoid leaks'

Well this is quite a novel approach by Russia,

Kremlin security are reportedly buying up typewriters,

a move reportedly prompted by recent leaks by WikiLeaks and Edward Snowden. A 486,540-rouble (£9,860) order for electric typewriters has been placed by the FSO agency on the state procurement website. The FSO has not commented on why it needs the old-fashioned devices. But an agency source told Russia's Izvestiya newspaper the aim was to prevent leaks from computer hardware. "After scandals with the distribution of secret documents by WikiLeaks, the exposes by Edward Snowden, reports about Dmitry Medvedev being bugged during his visit to the G20 London summit (in 2009), it has been decided to expand the practice of creating paper documents," the source said.
The source added that typewriters were already being used at Russia's defence and emergencies ministries for drafts and secret notes, and some reports had been prepared for President Vladimir Putin by typewriter.
Unlike printers, every typewriter had its own individual typing pattern which made it possible to link every document to a particular machine, Izvestiya said.

Well it does make sense, primitive as they may seem to some people typewriters are not as vulnerable as computers.

Those hipster Russians

Link

Kind of funny the safest security systems are the old fashioned ones not connected to the hive. The irony here is that Snowden ended up in Russia during his quest for asylum from the big bad evil brother stateside. Like jumping into the melting pot from the fire.

Reminds me of that joke ( I truly hope its a joke ) About Nasa spend 20 million on finding a solution to use a pen in space, Russia uses a pencil.

Or something like that... It was funny though.

several billion spent creating a massive NSA datacenter...guess what a cheap typewriter defeats all that...sometimes its good to go back to basics

In a future the fabulously wealthy will have their own scribes force again and all secret communiques of national importance will be written on parchment with handmade ink and a hand cut quill. I'm not sure if they'll start their papers with "We the People..." but you know the real good country that lasts a long time starts original like that. Luddites had their reasons.

Reminds me of the Titor story how the reason they didn't have those relatively antique computers in their present. Why he would need something so rudimentary for his causes, makes no sense unless he in his time was engulfed with AI computers that were backed by insidious members of his nation. When everybody is on the highway, during rush hour it is gridlocked, so the quickest way to get to your destination is on the slower roads on the side.

Typewriters and mimeographs for everybody. What next, the US going back to Morse code and ...paper messages? Whoa.

reply to post by Lady_Tuatha


back to stone age...

I'm guessing...Obama is scratching his head now and thinking...Gee...why didn't I think of that

I'd seen this too and it strikes me as the most disturbing to yet come out of the whole Snowden issue. Russia, as his temporary guest, can reasonably be assumed to have been told more off the record than the Guardian has shared on it. If not by some pointed asking, then likely by casually chatting on the areas he intended to share anyway.

If THIS is the extreme they felt that information indicated they had to go to be truly and 100% secure when it mattered the most? I think there is a lot to be concerned about.

I would think instead of going back to typewriters, they can easily still use a stand alone computer not connected to the internet, with the hard drive and USB inputs removed. This way they would only be able to print to a hard copy. Going back to typewriters is like using the old slide rule again. Sounds drastic and not really necessary.

Is it not possible to read back a message from the imprints on the typewriter ink ribbon?

Seem to recall this from some spy story or other.

Will not be able to use the regular mail service for delivery, as some suggest that that is being intercepted now as well, so down to carrier pigeons?

Multiple pigeons each with only parts of message?

Watch out for a glut of pigeon at the butchers!

Haha.

reply to post by WeRpeons


The lack of a net connection isn't necessarily proof of safety if the NSA is really high tech enough, I suppose. Maybe this is what The Guardian means about info regarding how the NSA is built being so destructive. Google a bit about a program called TEMPEST though. It's certainly real and was quite effective. Someone could literally see what was on your screen from down the street or out in a parking lot by reading leakage, to put it real simply I guess.

That's a couple decades old on the tech to exploit the issue. I'd hate to think what they can do now to make typewriters the answer. Eeek..

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Life gets more scarey by the day.

Many years ago, here in the UK, we had "Television Detector" vans going around, in an effort to catch people watching unlicensed TV sets. (It still sort of happens.)

www.dailymail.co.uk...

At the time it was said that the detector could tell what TV station/programme you were watching and even what room in the house the set was in!

Whether this was just a rumour or not I am not sure, some have said that the vans contained nothing, it was just a threat. But some GPO engineers have said it was real, but only a few of the vans were suitably equipped.

www.bitterwallet.com...

So I have no doubt, with all the advances since those days, it is more than possible to read a screen from some distance away.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000
A well placed bug could listen to the staccato of the computer keyboard and determine what letters have been pressed. It is a lot harder on a typewriter like the old IBM selectrics that had a little ball with all of the characters on it and it spun and struck at the platen in a manner that would be hard to distinguish one character from another.

Yes.. yes…

I’ll also urgently suggesting that they replace all those “nukular” ballistic/ICBM’s missiles with the slingshots since their computer system may “leak” the launch codes as well.

Ahahaha! I love this news! I'd like to see a proper Evil Empire run by paper pushing! Oh and on top of this I just saw the movie Brazil for the first time not too long ago ahahaha!

Hope they bought manual typewriters.
The CIA learned how to read the electric ones from across the street years ago.

Originally posted by dowot
Is it not possible to read back a message from the imprints on the typewriter ink ribbon?

Seem to recall this from some spy story or other.
.

Yes it's possible if the ribbon is not properly disposed of.

I must have burned miles of typewriter ribbons back in the day. Classified burn was never fun.