Have you ever been bugged?

When I was much younger than I am today I moved into an apartment block. It looked just like every other apartment block in the area. Gray, dull, nondescript, but after a while I noticed that it had all kinds of little "features" that other apartments in the area didn't have. Little touches of luxury, or things that were done in a slightly unusual way.

I later found out that it was formerly used to house senior officials in the local Communist Party (Hint, this wasn't in America), and I was advised by some friends who had lived in the area for a lot longer than I had that my apartment was probably bugged. In all probability nobody was actually listening to me, but the bugs had been installed some time before and simply never removed.

This tale was backed up by one of my colleagues who had first hand experience. They'd heard a weird humming, and it turned out to be coming from a microphone that was hidden behind their wall paper which was either malfunctioning or was picking up interference that as causing the microphone to act like a speaker (Soviet era microphones were just reversed speakers really).

So, have you ever been bugged, maybe by jealous husbandwife, or a private investigator, or maybe even the cops?

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Your joking right.

Everyone has, it's just wether or not their aware.

Your other thread on speakers talkin nonsense back will no doubt fuel that fire.

originally posted by: CthruU
a reply to: AaarghZombies

Your joking right.

Everyone has, it's just wether or not their aware.

Your other thread on speakers talkin nonsense back will no doubt fuel that fire.

I'm thinking of an actual bug, rather than just your Alexa reporting back to Amazon about what you're safe word is.

originally posted by: AaarghZombies
When I was much younger than I am today I moved into an apartment block. It looked just like every other apartment block in the area. Gray, dull, nondescript, but after a while I noticed that it had all kinds of little "features" that other apartments in the area didn't have. Little touches of luxury, or things that were done in a slightly unusual way.

I later found out that it was formerly used to house senior officials in the local Communist Party (Hint, this wasn't in America), and I was advised by some friends who had lived in the area for a lot longer than I had that my apartment was probably bugged. In all probability nobody was actually listening to me, but the bugs had been installed some time before and simply never removed.

This tale was backed up by one of my colleagues who had first hand experience. They'd heard a weird humming, and it turned out to be coming from a microphone that was hidden behind their wall paper which was either malfunctioning or was picking up interference that as causing the microphone to act like a speaker (Soviet era microphones were just reversed speakers really).

So, have you ever been bugged, maybe by jealous husbandwife, or a private investigator, or maybe even the cops?

Which country did you live in when you were inhabiting said appartement?

What were the features and luxurious stuff?

Would be nice to know as you ask many questions but never go into details about your past life and the reasons why your past life brought up said questions in this post and most of your others?

Are your questions a studies project?

Just asking.

Merry Christmas.

Lags

Yeah, everyone is bugged these days. You don't have to go very far to document it either. Just lay your phone on the table and talk about adult diapers and watch the ads flow around you like the stream of life.

But, I was doing pre interview prep with a rather controversial guest once and the phone kept hanging up, the lights flickered every couple of minutes and at just that time a couple of jets from Selfridge ANG did a full burner climb over the house. Selfridge is 70 miles away.

So yeah, everyone's bugged.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

originally posted by: Lagomorphe

originally posted by: AaarghZombies
When I was much younger than I am today I moved into an apartment block. It looked just like every other apartment block in the area. Gray, dull, nondescript, but after a while I noticed that it had all kinds of little "features" that other apartments in the area didn't have. Little touches of luxury, or things that were done in a slightly unusual way.

I later found out that it was formerly used to house senior officials in the local Communist Party (Hint, this wasn't in America), and I was advised by some friends who had lived in the area for a lot longer than I had that my apartment was probably bugged. In all probability nobody was actually listening to me, but the bugs had been installed some time before and simply never removed.

This tale was backed up by one of my colleagues who had first hand experience. They'd heard a weird humming, and it turned out to be coming from a microphone that was hidden behind their wall paper which was either malfunctioning or was picking up interference that as causing the microphone to act like a speaker (Soviet era microphones were just reversed speakers really).

So, have you ever been bugged, maybe by jealous husbandwife, or a private investigator, or maybe even the cops?

Which country did you live in when you were inhabiting said appartement?

What were the features and luxurious stuff?

Would be nice to know as you ask many questions but never go into details about your past life and the reasons why your past life brought up said questions in this post and most of your others?

Are your questions a studies project?

Just asking.

Merry Christmas.

Lags

I used to live behind the iron curtain, so to speak. So some of my life experiences are very different from the average person on ATS who either grew up in a western country or who were born after the fall of the soviet union (or at least are too young to remember most of it), but I've noticed that many people who have lived in democracies their entire lives share the same fears and anxieties, as well as the same distrust of authority, and I find it curious and I would like to know more.

I've also noticed that over the last 3 years ATS has changed. We're getting a lot more political content that's Left Vs Right rather than the conspiracy and paranormal topics that used to dominate it. We're also getting a lot more commentary on things that people have seen in the media or online, and a far fewer posts about people's own personal experiences.

I believe that in order to broaden our minds and to better understand something we need to understand who other people see it, and what their personal experiences are. So I've started a couple of threads like this that are related to specific areas of conspiracies or the supernaturalparanormal, and which aren't bogged down in left vs right politics or in specific polarizing events or encounters.

As a bonus, every couple of threads somebody mentions an author or a case, or a book, and I go and pick it up off of amazon to broaden my own knowledge.

"Bugged" isn't really a term that means the same thing it used to.

As others have pointed out, the days of some slightly tech skilled Fed climbing a phone pole or sneaking into a house to unscrew the transmitter end of a old school landline phone are long gone.

Even the days of high tech listening equipment being shoved into an apparently commercial vehicle ( the old flower delivery van trope ) are mostly gone.

The PC that I'm typing this reply on is feeding a constant stream of very specific information out - information that's being analyzed and stored ( in a sense ) by numerous governments and corporations.

The Samsung smart phone charging on my desk is even more proficient at gathering my data - it's cameras and microphones an open door into every aspect of my life for those who have the key... And make no mistake, a lot of entities, private and public, have the keys.

My smart TV, a few feet behind me? Same.

The Xbox One X on that TV? Yup, it as well.

With all that in mind, here's the real kicker. I'm not just bugged nearly every moment of my life - I actually pay out of the nose for the privilege. Cell phone bills, my ISP, subscriptions to streaming services ( games and movies ), memberships to websites, the content creators I support on Patreon, the online stores I shop at...

And so much more. Nearly every thing I do, online or off, these days feeds the data beast information that not only serves to profile me - but to create models that profile you as well.

Once during the early eighties I was friends with Herman Hesse` s daughter (Not the writer ). Very nice woman who once hypnotized me in like 10 seconds and also gave me her collection of twizzle sticks from drinks around the world. I called her once on a pay phone and it made a very strange sound while connecting. I am sure that the call was recorded and monitored most likely from her home phone which I assume was bugged.

originally posted by: Hefficide
"Bugged" isn't really a term that means the same thing it used to.

As others have pointed out, the days of some slightly tech skilled Fed climbing a phone pole or sneaking into a house to unscrew the transmitter end of a old school landline phone are long gone.

Even the days of high tech listening equipment being shoved into an apparently commercial vehicle ( the old flower delivery van trope ) are mostly gone.

The PC that I'm typing this reply on is feeding a constant stream of very specific information out - information that's being analyzed and stored ( in a sense ) by numerous governments and corporations.

The Samsung smart phone charging on my desk is even more proficient at gathering my data - it's cameras and microphones an open door into every aspect of my life for those who have the key... And make no mistake, a lot of entities, private and public, have the keys.

My smart TV, a few feet behind me? Same.

The Xbox One X on that TV? Yup, it as well.

With all that in mind, here's the real kicker. I'm not just bugged nearly every moment of my life - I actually pay out of the nose for the privilege. Cell phone bills, my ISP, subscriptions to streaming services ( games and movies ), memberships to websites, the content creators I support on Patreon, the online stores I shop at...

And so much more. Nearly every thing I do, online or off, these days feeds the data beast information that not only serves to profile me - but to create models that profile you as well.

My own personally opinion is that being "monitored" because you have a device that's capable of listening in to your conversations or passing on information about you as a general consumer because you chose to have a device in your possession isn't really the same things as you being targeted as an individual for direct surveillance.

I'm more thinking of targeted surveillance, for example by a PI hired by an ex-wife, or by the state because they suspect you of a crime.

Wouldn't putting in a simple hardware gateway on your internet connection enable you to filter out more of the things that you were talking about?

originally posted by: AaarghZombies

originally posted by: Lagomorphe

originally posted by: AaarghZombies
When I was much younger than I am today I moved into an apartment block. It looked just like every other apartment block in the area. Gray, dull, nondescript, but after a while I noticed that it had all kinds of little "features" that other apartments in the area didn't have. Little touches of luxury, or things that were done in a slightly unusual way.

I later found out that it was formerly used to house senior officials in the local Communist Party (Hint, this wasn't in America), and I was advised by some friends who had lived in the area for a lot longer than I had that my apartment was probably bugged. In all probability nobody was actually listening to me, but the bugs had been installed some time before and simply never removed.

This tale was backed up by one of my colleagues who had first hand experience. They'd heard a weird humming, and it turned out to be coming from a microphone that was hidden behind their wall paper which was either malfunctioning or was picking up interference that as causing the microphone to act like a speaker (Soviet era microphones were just reversed speakers really).

So, have you ever been bugged, maybe by jealous husbandwife, or a private investigator, or maybe even the cops?

Which country did you live in when you were inhabiting said appartement?

What were the features and luxurious stuff?

Would be nice to know as you ask many questions but never go into details about your past life and the reasons why your past life brought up said questions in this post and most of your others?

Are your questions a studies project?

Just asking.

Merry Christmas.

Lags

I used to live behind the iron curtain, so to speak. So some of my life experiences are very different from the average person on ATS who either grew up in a western country or who were born after the fall of the soviet union (or at least are too young to remember most of it), but I've noticed that many people who have lived in democracies their entire lives share the same fears and anxieties, as well as the same distrust of authority, and I find it curious and I would like to know more.

I've also noticed that over the last 3 years ATS has changed. We're getting a lot more political content that's Left Vs Right rather than the conspiracy and paranormal topics that used to dominate it. We're also getting a lot more commentary on things that people have seen in the media or online, and a far fewer posts about people's own personal experiences.

I believe that in order to broaden our minds and to better understand something we need to understand who other people see it, and what their personal experiences are. So I've started a couple of threads like this that are related to specific areas of conspiracies or the supernaturalparanormal, and which aren't bogged down in left vs right politics or in specific polarizing events or encounters.

As a bonus, every couple of threads somebody mentions an author or a case, or a book, and I go and pick it up off of amazon to broaden my own knowledge.

So your past life was In Eastern bloc country such as Russia, the other side of Germany... Poland?

I’m interested as grew up as a “Cold war kid” in the UK living next to one of the biggest US early warning stations... “ahem” Echelon in the UK too (Menwith Hill)

Lags

a reply to: AaarghZombies

originally posted by: AaarghZombies
Wouldn't putting in a simple hardware gateway on your internet connection enable you to filter out more of the things that you were talking about?

The answer to that is incredibly complicated - but two surface thoughts.

1) There are some things you can do to firewall / isolate yourself from surveillance but those steps reduce functionality and access drastically. Throw on TOR and those legendary 9 proxies and, sure, you can access some aspects of some websites - but not in any way you'd enjoy or desire. Waiting an hour for a text only page to load isn't fun.

2) Any connection, no matter how secure, always has weak links. There is always potentially identifying residue left behind.

You would think people would notice when they open the doors in the back of the flower van and all they see inside are shiny metal boxes. I'm lucky in that I'm a truther type, so rarely type or talk in an extroverted attempt to deceive.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

No, but I've bugged.....

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Do CC cameras in the workplace count?
A store I worked in had the office where the cash was kept under CC.
Do ATM machines count?

Yes.

a reply to: mysterioustranger

No, but I've bugged.....

I hear ya.

Have you ever been bugged?

There's not a single person living in the US that isn't.

Between the NSA,Google,Amazon.

Your entire digital life is.

Yes, I once lived in a "secure" area. I made a cell phone call, standing in my yard to my mother (because it would not work in the house) and talked about something that was close by and my concern about living so close to it. I did this because I knew my home phone was bugged, there was a sticker on it that told me this (we had "free" phone and internet service - but cell phones were fairly new and not supplied by the community).
The next day I was chastistised for talking about it by several neighbors who were at work (everyone worked at the same place who lived there) and not at home, when I made the call.

That was the absolute worst place I ever lived, and it had no crime, was almost Mayberry (Andy Griffith) like "ideal" small town community, had and it's own tiny medical facility that could take care of most anything, and was a fully self contained little community.

Do NOT ask me where this was, I won't say except to say it was in the US, so you can believe me or not, but don't ask where or who the owner of the community was, I value my current life. Our beloved barber/hair dresser who had a standing weekly appointment with the head of the community and did all our hair, had a "freak" accident when driving to his home that was not in the community. Freak accidents and mysterious deaths happened every couple of months or so. I was never so glad to leave an "ideal" community.

a reply to: AaarghZombies