Spy claims sting Samsung Electronics
WikiLeaks documents show CIA hacked TV sets and phones to eavesdrop on users like Big Brother
Seoul — For a company that has been mired in negative headlines for months, just about the last thing Samsung Electronics needed was news its smart TV sets could be used to spy on users. According to documents released by WikiLeaks, that is what the CIA did with a programme called Weeping Angel. In essence, a television microphone, designed to allow voice commands, picks up and transmits sounds, while the device appears to be switched off. While Samsung was not the only company named in the WikiLeaks documents — Apple and Google were also mentioned — it is still a problem for the South Korean giant. The debacle of exploding Galaxy Note 7 smartphones has cost it billions of dollars, while heir apparent Lee Jae-yong faces charges of bribery and embezzlement in an influence-peddling scandal. The trial starts on Thursday. "This can’t be good, with some damage already done to its global profile recently," said Hwang Jang-sun, a professor who specialises in communications at Seoul’s Chung...
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