We find ourselves in the realm of parental control software for mobile devices: let us explore the ways in which they can be misused for unlawful activities. The incident involving a 20-year-old woman, who was found and abducted by her parents due to their disapproval of her same-sex relationship. How can one ascertain whether surveillance is taking place?
Recently, reports emerged regarding a young woman from Ercolano who was located via GPS after being abducted by her parents, who were unable to accept her homosexuality. The young woman, just 20 years of age, had departed from her family residence specifically to flee the mistreatment she endured as a result of her romantic involvement with another girl. She had sought solace with a friend. Her parents managed to track her down using the GPS feature on her mobile device. They subsequently approached her and forcibly removed her, confining her within the house and forbidding any contact with the outside world.
In this instance, it remains unclear whether the technology involved was spyware, a parental control application, or merely a location-sharing feature—activated, in all likelihood, without the girl’s awareness. However, instances of stalking through digital means are far from rare: take, for example, Filippo Turetta, who, despite the aggravating factor of stalking not being acknowledged, reportedly installed an application on Giulia Cecchettin’s phone (illustrated below) that enabled him to track her movements online and in other ways.
Spyware for All: Accessing Another’s Phone Is a Breeze
The Equalize case, followed by Paragon. Until quite recently, it seems the general public had little acquaintance with dossiers. Recently, however, cases of espionage have taken centre stage in public discourse. Yet, the significant scandals merely scratch the surface, representing the most apparent indication of a swiftly growing surveillance industry. The two dramatic news stories highlighted illustrate that “spying” extends beyond the exclusive domain of governments, intelligence agencies, and law enforcement; it is also a capability that sophisticated corporations can harness.
Even at more modest levels and employing what are often termed commercial methods, accessing someone’s phone is achievable for nearly anyone: simply pay, and we’re not discussing astronomical sums. For a modest monthly fee, often just a few dozen euros, or a few hundred for the most comprehensive offerings, one can gain access to a diverse range of spy applications readily available for download from the phone’s app store, much like any other software.
Monitoring phone conversations and capturing screenshots: the characteristics of surveillance software
A brief online inquiry reveals a thriving market for spyware and stalkerware—tools that, rather tellingly, are linked to the crime of stalking. These products provide disturbingly invasive control options, including the real-time interception of phone calls and voice messages, detailed location histories, and essentially comprehensive tracking of both online activities and a significant portion of offline behaviour.
Among the initial results displayed by search engines, a software designed solely for Android devices catches the eye, providing a complimentary 2-day trial. Following that, you have the option to select a 90-day licence priced at 359 euros, or an unlimited licence available for 689 euros.
Included among the features are call recording, the ability to conduct environmental listening, and the capacity to capture live videos and screenshots from the target’s phone. Additionally, there is access to location data every 15 minutes or upon request, along with a history of locations, enabling a detailed reconstruction of an individual’s movements. Moreover, there is the matter of accessing all chats, emails, files stored in memory, and the websites that have been visited.
Beyond mere applications: a comprehensive look at the array of “spy” kits available for purchase in today’s market
In addition to the app license for managing phones and PCs, a diverse array of products designed for discreet surveillance captures attention: from miniature recorders to tiny cameras, transmitters cleverly concealed within ordinary chargers, and kits that can be installed in vehicles to enable tracking of the car’s location and audio recording from within the passenger area (illustrated below). For many products, the option to pay in installments is available, demonstrating the thriving surveillance sector’s accessibility to even the average individual.
Among the numerous sources examined, another application compatible with both Android and iOS has garnered outstanding customer feedback and offers an extensive array of services. The site touts itself as the premier application for parental control, designed to oversee your children’s PCs, phones, and tablets. However, that’s not all. In this instance, the subscription options vary, and the prices seem a touch more reasonable (as illustrated below). The two software providers, much like numerous others readily available on the internet, position themselves as particularly focused on parental control. It is quite clear that they are also appropriate for a variety of other applications.
One of the potential applications mentioned is, for instance, “business management.” Consistently adhering to legal standards. Both firms emphasize their disavowal of responsibility for any unlawful applications. “The regulation surrounding the control of individuals via software is strictly prohibited by law and constitutes a criminal offense. Consequently, anyone who installs such software without the consent of the affected party bears both civil and criminal liability and must accept full responsibility in this matter,” asserts one piece of information.
Exploitation in the Ambiguous Realm: The Perils of Parental Oversight
What distinguishes legal use from illegal use in the context of spy applications? This is where the entire conundrum of the ambiguous realm in which these surveillance systems function comes to light. The application of control software is permissible provided that the individual under observation has granted their clear consent to such surveillance. In numerous parental control systems, young users are cautioned against accessing particular websites or content during designated times. However, this is not always the case, and the spyware applications we frequently encounter seem to deliberately appeal to potential users by touting the app’s “invisibility.” These systems are, in truth, engineered to operate discreetly and conceal their existence on the device.
To install the spy application, one must have direct access to the device intended for monitoring. This distinction sets it apart from more sophisticated malware that can be installed remotely, which, thankfully, are not as readily available.
“Premium Services”: Yet, Deceptions Lurk Just Out of Sight
I decided to reach out to one of the parental control companies I had come across, presenting myself as a young woman keen on acquiring the app to keep an eye on her partner. The operator replies rather curtly, indicating that “there is another option, not listed on the site” which entails a higher fee (990 euros per month, with a minimum commitment of two months) to monitor an individual comprehensively, even without direct access to their phone. In this instance, it suffices to furnish the mobile number of the individual you wish to keep an eye on, I am assured.
When I voice my concerns regarding the legal aspects of the activity, particularly in light of the site’s persistent emphasis on the necessity of consent, I am met with the straightforward response that “those are matters that need to be documented.” The proposed payment methods leave me with numerous uncertainties: solely through PostePay or an instant bank transfer. There is no alternative that can provide any greater assurances to the customer.
It is rather peculiar to note that upon conducting some research, it appears the company in question has a rather established pattern of failing to uphold its commitments. “Once you’ve made the payment, it vanishes without a trace and promptly blocks you on Whatsapp,” cautions a user on a well-known review site. A situation corroborated by numerous sources: This website peddles software that simply does not exist. Upon receiving payment through a Postepay top-up, registered to an individual, it promptly blocks you on Whatsapp and ceases all communication.
In April of last year, the same company found itself featured in a report by Le Iene. At the center of this affair was Massimiliano Oliva, a former financier with a prior conviction for soliciting funds from a Chinese entrepreneur, coercively threatening fines amounting to thousands of euros. Cornered by the press, Oliva attempted to flee, yet insisted he was unaware of anything.
As of now, we have confirmed that the company’s services, which include the simultaneous request for instant payments, are still being openly provided by operators who are responsive to the contacts given. The disclaimer on the site pertains to a company that is registered in the vicinity of Rome and Civitavecchia. The search results culminated in a seizure order issued by the prosecutor’s office in Civitavecchia, as depicted above.
Regardless of their reliability or dubious nature, the realm in which these parental control services operate exists in a precarious legal grey area that enables them to flourish without significant issues. Every source we’ve consulted underscores the necessity of having access to the device you wish to monitor.
Merely obtaining access to someone’s phone does not inherently imply that the individual has consented to being observed. Consequently, firms providing such services readily facilitate the illicit use of their software, and they are clearly aware of this, implying quite overtly the surveillance of their employees or those of their associates.
In a particular cartoon illustrating the app’s functionality, an employee sends a text message to her supervisor regarding a sick note. Here is her online inquiry: “What are the steps to secure a pay increase when transitioning to a new position?” In an ideal scenario, the employer would have the capability to view this search through the software, effectively revealing the disloyal employee depicted above.
In yet another intriguing revelation, a gentleman employs a covert application to unveil his wife’s clandestine liaison. “My husband is coming to collect me after work,” a woman states, declining an invitation to meet her prospective romantic interest. “Absolutely dreadful,” he remarks. “Splendid news,” she later conveys to him, “my husband is away on a business trip this weekend.”
The application acquired by Turetta for management Giulia Cecchettin
The suggestion of being able to control a partner from a distance, and implicitly without their consent, is rather unsettling when we consider the alarming reports of women being stalked through the use of such technological means.
In Turetta’s life sentence for the murder of Giulia Cecchettin, the judges acknowledged only one aggravating circumstance for the 23-year-old: premeditation. They dismissed the considerations of cruelty and stalking. The prosecution has made it clear that the obsessive control he exerted over his former girlfriend was further demonstrated by the spy app he allegedly installed on her phone. The prosecution highlighted the “persistent threatening behavior, the manipulation of her social media, the acquisition of surveillance applications that enabled him to track Giulia’s online presence without her knowledge, the oversight of her followers, unanticipated encounters, and unwelcome physical advances”.
The victim’s sister, Elena Cecchettin, expressed her discontent over the failure to acknowledge the stalking incident. “The events that transpired do not simply vanish due to the lack of contestation regarding an aggravating circumstance, or even multiple ones.” Moreover, it fails to alleviate the pain and anxiety that I, as someone intimately connected to Giulia, have had to endure. Unavoidably, the victim’s closest family members become entangled in a complex web of anxiety and turmoil. It is important to clarify that I am not suggesting the pain experienced by Giulia is in any way comparable; nonetheless, it is essential to acknowledge that failing to recognize stalking also signifies a disregard for the victim’s family,” she remarked the day following the verdict.
A recent survey reveals that 4 percent of mobile phones are compromised by stalkerware.
Beyond sensational cases, this is a widespread phenomenon: a survey conducted by Kaspersky, a firm specializing in cybersecurity, revealed that 6 percent of respondents in Italy reported being tracked without their consent, while 4 percent found that stalkerware had been installed on their devices by their partner.
Parental control, born to monitor the safety of one’s children in the virtual world, and driven above all by the invasive presence of social media in the lives of the youngest, turns out to be an ambiguous tool because the regulatory framework lends itself to forcing and distortion. But limiting oneself to criticising the legislative framework of a tool (although it can certainly be improved) does not ultimately give a full vision of the phenomenon.
Spyware tools in the grey area of legality arise to respond to a market demand that is a precise need existing in society: that of control. In the era of digital surveillance, in which the free nature of social media and internet services is almost always paid for with our personal data, in which it is possible to discover a lot of sensitive information about a person even by simply browsing social pages for a few minutes, we have internalised the idea of this tempting possibility. To the point of transforming the awareness that this opportunity exists into a need. Naturally, the weaker party in the power relationship, such as an employee in the company or a person victimised by an obsessive partner, bears the price.
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