The alleged instrument of a rumored Brazilian COINTELPRO conspiracy. Not much credible evidence for the claim so far.
Intellectual dishonesty continues to reign supreme in this debate. The Folha de S. Paulo’s online edition published an article by reporter Gabriela Guerreiro whose objective seems to be to disinform the public.
Brazilian journalist Luis Nassif and his Baker Street Irregulars have been closely watching a claim reported widely in the press here: That ABIN, a federal intelligence agency barred by law from conducting wiretaps (go figure), has equipment capable of conducting wiretaps such as the one that supposedly targeted the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court here.
The most interesting contribution from the Irregulars: A link to a copy of the user’s manual for the gizmo.
RTFM (”read the freaking manual”): Always sound advice. The reader cites the manual as supporting the claim that the gizmo cannot be used for catching your wife arranging to meet your poolman at the Love Shack Motel on a cell phone or land line.
As Wálter Fangiello Maierovitch of CartaCapital noted yesterday, the Brazilian Army actually acquired the exact same U.S.-made “suitcase” used for bug sweeping.
The Minister of Defense, Nelson Jobim — a former Senator and Supreme Court Chief Justice much given to wearing the uniform of an Army general these days — reportedly brandished a bill of sale for the equipment while calling for the temporary suspension of ABIN director and former federal police director, Paulo Lacerda.
In May 2006, Veja magazine ran a dossier, sourced to Daniel Dantas, according to which Lacerda possessed bribe-stuffed Swiss bank accounts. This turned out to be an utter fabrication, but Veja characterized the claim as “plausible,” even though it had evidence to the contrary (which it refused to publish.)
Maierovitch, a former federal judge and federal “drug czar” under Cardoso, observes:
Jobim sabe muito bem que o fato de a Abin possuir equipamento, comprado legalmente, não traduz certeza de ela ter grampeado Demóstenes e Gilmar. A intervenção de Jobim gera uma pergunta que não quer calar: As Forças Armadas, que possuem igual equipamento, também realizam grampeamentos ou o equipamento é so para varreduras?
Jobim knows full well that the fact that ABIN has this equipment, legally acquired, does not translate into certainty that ABIN bugged Sen. Torres and Chief Justice Mendes. His interference in this matter creates a question that demands an answer: Do the Armed Forces, which own the exact same equipment, also conduct bugging with it, or do they only use it for bug sweeps?
Nassif & Co., meanwhile, focus more closely on the technical feasibility of using the equipment in question.
Veja magazine had reported categorically that ABIN, as an institution, had targeted the Supreme Court for illegal eavesdropping. The claim is not at well documented, to say the least, as is the case with many Veja magazine “investigative” reports. Veja tends to try to sell you gabbling rumors as “investigative reporting,” in my observation. See
- “Abin Bugged the Supreme Court For Lula!”: A Tale of a Tempest in a Teapot?
- Veja (Brazil): Behind the Scenes of an “Exemplary” Investigative Report
- Veja Só: Editorial Integrity at Brazil’s Grupo Abril
- “The Death of Fact-Checking in Brazilian Journalism”
It is starting to seem more likely that the phone call was recorded by the Senate phone system, Baker St. Irregulars report. One of Nassif’s Irregulars claims that when you call the Senate switchboard, an automated message informs you that your call will be monitored for security purposes.
I will have to read up on that point.
Nassif & Co., my hasty translation:
Equipamento de varredura não faz grampo, diz técnico da Abin
Bug sweeping equipment does not eavesdrop, says ABIN technician
BRASÍLIA – O técnico do Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento para Segurança das Comunicações da Agência Brasileira de Inteligência (Abin), Otávio Carlos Cunha da Silva, disse que o equipamento comprado pela Agência em conjunto com o Exército brasileiro só pode ser usado para fazer a varredura de grampos, e não grampear telefones. Ele alegou que o material em questão é o Omni-Spectral Correlator 5000, que pode ser comprado até mesmo pela internet por cerca de US$ 20 mil.
ABIN commmunications security technician Cunha da Silva said the equipment acquired by the agency together with the Brazilian army can only be used for bug sweeping, not for eavesdroping on telephone calls. He claims the device in question is the Omni-Spectral Correlator 5000, which can be bought over the Internet, even, for around $20,000.
Nassif’s comment:
Confirmada essa notícia, o Ministro da Defesa Nelson Jobim é o próximo da fila, das reputações demolidas por essa extraordinaria operação-abafa. Ainda há que se esperar por mais informações. Mas pela velocidade com que os fatos estão se precipitando, os “aloprados” da Veja conseguirão destruir não apenas as próprias reputações, mas a de terceiros.
If this report is confirmed, Jobim is next in line among the reputations demolished by this extraordinary cover-up operation. More information is still needed. But given the speed at which information is coming out, it seems the “head cases” at Veja are going to destroy, not only their own reputations, but the reputations of third parties as well.
É incrível esse mundo da Internet.
This Internet-driven world is incredible.
Reader João Vergilio comments:
A desonestidade intelectual continua imperando nessa discussão. A Folha Online publica um texto da repórter Gabriela Guerreiro cujo objetivo parece ser o de desinformar o público. Já a partir de seu título: “Diretor afastado da Abin confirma que maletas são capazes de realizar escutas”.
Intellectual dishonesty continues to reign supreme in this debate. The Folha de S. Paulo’s online edition published an article by reporter Gabriela Guerreiro whose objective seems to be disinform the public. Let’s start with the headline: “Suspended ABIN director confirms that the briefcases are capable of intercepting telephone calls.
A afirmação taxativa não encontra nenhum respaldo no corpo da notícia. O que o sr. José Milton Campana afirmou foi que o aparelho é capaz de realizar escutas num raio de até 100m. de distância, “em terreno limpo”. Ou seja, sem muros interpostos. A leitura do texto deixa claro que o aparelho não foi feito para isso, e que a interceptação, se realizada, seria extremamente precária. Se entendi bem, seria mais ou menos como usar uma chave de fenda para abrir uma garrafa.
The categorical statement in the headline is not supported by anything reported in the body of the story. What Mr. Campana said was that the apparatus was capable of intercepting calls within a radius of 100m, “in clear terrain.” That is, with no walls interposed between the device and the target. The article makes it clear that the apparatus was not designed for this purpose, and that if used to intercept calls would be extremely precarious. If I understand this correctly, it would be more or less like using a screwdriver to open a bottle.
I’ve done before when I lost my “church key” (bottle-opener). Haven’t you? You whack the butt of the screwdriver with the heel of your hand with the tip of the blade inserted in the bottle cap.
Easier to slam the the edge of the cap down against the edge of a table, actually.
A repórter afirma que “Campana não deixou claro se as escutas realizadas pelos equipamentos seriam ambientais ou telefônicas.” Ela mesma, porém, reproduz, poucas linhas abaixo, uma declaração que diz exatamente o oposto disso. Palavras de Campana: “O conteúdo da comunicação é impossível de ser inteligível. Não seria nunca esse equipamento capaz de fazer interceptação de celular. Só escuta ambiental.” Não deixou claro? Por que desinformar o público dessa forma?
The reporter states that “Campana was unclear as to whether the eavesdropping conducted with this equipment would be ambient or telephonic.” And yet she herself reproduces, just a few lines below, a statement to exactly the opposite effect. Campana’s words: “The content of the communication cannot be made intelligible. This device would never be able to intercept a cellphone call. Only environmental listening.” Is that statement “unclear”? Why is the Folha disinforming the public in this ways?
Because it is chock full of Moonies trained by the Masters [sic] em Jornalismo program? Just a guess.
De toda forma, fica cada vez mais claro que é fundamental que a revista Veja disponibilize a gravação que possui, se é que a possui. Ao que parece, qualquer técnico de som seria capaz de determinar se a gravação foi feita por esse maldito aparelho, ou não.
In any event, it is increasingly clear that Veja must make available the recording in its possession, if in it fact it possesses it. It seems that any sound technician would be able to determine whether the recording was made by this infernal machine or not.
Reader Marcel Schimuda writes:
viu a chamada de capa da UOL?
Did you see the headline on the UOL news portal?
Escutas Telefônicas
CPI marca depoimento de Jobim para dia 10
Diretor afastado da Abin confirma que maletas podem realizar escutas
Telephone intercepts: CPI schedules Jobim testimony for September 10. Suspended ABIN official confirms that the briefcases can perform intercepts.
isto agora, as 21:09, NO TOPO DA PÁGINA.
This was the top headline at 9:09 pm.
o link direciona para clique aqui , onde se lê entre outras coisas:
The link sends you to [URL], where you read, among other things:
“O conteúdo da comunicação é impossível de ser inteligível. Não seria nunca esse equipamento capaz de fazer interceptação de celular. Só escuta ambiental. O máximo que vai conseguir é saber que neste ambiente têm vários celulares transmitindo ondas”, disse o técnico –que acompanha o diretor da Abin no depoimento”
“The contents of the communication cannot be made intelligible. …
The same quote cited by the previous reader.
Quanta cara-de-pau.
These people are just stonefaced liars!
Reader Lucas Belgrano comments:
Querem saber do que A maleta é capaz?
You want to know what The Briefcase can really do?
Manual: clique aqui.
Click here to download the user’s manual.
121 páginas em inglês, divirtam-se. Alguns jornais deviam ler o manual…. Porque senão vão dizer que o Microondas da ABIN grava conversa da ISS.
It’s 121 pages, in English. Have fun. The newspapers ought to read the manual, because unless they do, they are going to wind up telling us that microwave ovens in the ABIN lunchroom are being used to bug the social security administration.
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