斯诺登设计手机反监听保护套

爱德华•斯诺登资料图

Edward Snowden has helped design a mobile phone case called the “introspection engine” that, he claims, will show when a smartphone is transmitting information that could be monitored.

爱德华•斯诺登参与设计了一个手机保护壳，称为“反监听装置”，他声称可以监测到智能手机是否在传输可能被监听的信息。

Presenting via video link to event at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Snowden and co-designer Andrew “Bunnie” Huang showed how the device connects to a phone’s different radio transmitters, showing its owner knows when a cellular, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection is being used to share or receive data.

在马萨诸塞州剑桥市的麻省理工学院媒体实验室里，斯诺登和他的合作伙伴Andrew“Bunnie” Huang通过视频链接进行了演示，向手机用户展示该装置如何连接到手机的不同无线电发射器，该设备会向用户显示手机是否在使用蜂窝技术，Wi-Fi或蓝牙设备连接分享或接收数据。

Initial mockups of the introspection engine show a small, monochromatic display built into its casing shows whether the phone is “dark”, or whether it is transmitting, and it also can supply an iPhone with extra battery power and cover the rear-facing camera.

反监听装置的初始模型是植入手机保护套的一个小小的单色显示器，它能够显示手机是否被“黑”，或是否在传送信息，它还可以为苹果手机提供额外的电力，并盖住苹果手机的后置摄像头。

It could be developed to act as a sort of “kill switch” that would disconnect a phone’s power supply when it detects that a radio is transmitting data after its owner has attempted to turn it off.

该装置可以成为一种“切断开关”，如果检测到无线电数据传送，在用户试图将手机关闭后，它就会断开手机的电源。

The device is an academic project and nowhere near ready for the mass market, but could still influence how consumers view the “tracking devices” – otherwise known as smartphones that they rely on every day.

该装置是一个学术项目，还没有量产上市的准备，但仍可能影响消费者如何看待“跟踪设备”——或者说就是他们每天依赖的智能手机。

“If you have a phone in your pocket that’s turned on, a long-lived record of your movements has been created,” Snowden said. “As a result of the way the cell network functions your device is constantly shouting into the air by means of radio signals a unique identity that validates you to the phone company. And this unique identity is not only saved by that phone company, but it can also be observed as it travels over the air by independent, even more dangerous third parties.”

斯诺登说：“如果你的口袋里有一个开着的手机，那么它就创建了一个有关你的活动的长久记录。由于手机网络运作的方式，你的手机不断以无线电信号的方式向空中发射一种特殊的身份信息，这种信息将向电话公司确认你的身份。而这个独特的身份信息不仅会被该电话公司保存，还会在空中传送的过程中被独立个体、甚至是更危险的第三方监测到。”

Most smartphones disable Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and cellular transmission when in airplane mode, but Snowden and Huang say that can’t be trusted.

大多数智能手机在飞行模式下禁用Wi-Fi，蓝牙和蜂窝传输，但斯诺登和Huang表示这不可信任。

iPhone防监听设备设想图

“Malware packages, peddled by hackers at a price accessible by private individuals, can activate radios without any indication from the user interface,” they write in their paper on the device. “Trusting a phone that has been hacked to go into airplane mode is like trusting a drunk person to judge if they are sober enough to drive.”

他们在有关该装置的文件中写到：“黑客兜售的恶意软件包，其价格平易近人，可以在用户界面没有任何指示的情况下激活无线电信号。相信一个已经被黑客攻击的手机进入了飞行模式，就像相信一个醉酒的人去判断自己是否足够清醒到可以开车。”

The project is an extension of Snowden’s work to inform the public about the surveillance capabilities available to governments around the world. In June 2013 he revealed information about mass surveillance programs from the National Security Agency, where he was a contractor.

斯诺登要告知公众关于世界各地政府的监视能力，该项目是对此的延伸。2013年6月，斯诺登揭露了美国国家安全局的大规模监视活动，他曾是那里的一名雇员。

In addition to educating people about security risks, he now wants to help citizens defend themselves – if the introspection engine ever becomes a reality.

除了对人们进行安全风险教育，他现在想帮助公民保护自己——如果这个反监听装置能够成为现实的话。

Snowden and Huang say there’s no guarantee the device will ever be more than a mockup. “Over the coming year, we hope to prototype and verify the introspection engine’s abilities,” they write. “As the project is run largely through volunteer efforts on a shoestring budget, it will proceed at a pace reflecting the practical limitations of donated time.” If they do receive the proper funding, they could release the device in partnership with the Freedom of the Press Foundation media advocacy group.

斯诺登和Huang表示，不能保证该装置会不会只是一个实物模型。他们写道：“在未来的一年中，我们希望做出该反监听装置的样机并验证其能力。由于该项目的运作主要依靠志愿者的工作且预算有限，其进展速度受到志愿时长的限制。”如果得到适当的资金援助，他们可以与自由出版基金会的媒体宣传组合作，将该装置投放到市场。

Snowden said the introspection engine was designed to help protect journalists. “One good journalist in the right place at the right time can change history. One good journalist can move the needle in the context of an election. One well-placed journalist can influence the outcome of a war,” he said.

斯诺登说，设计该反监视装置的目的是保护记者。他说：“在正确的时间和地点，一位优秀的记者可以改变历史。在选举的过程中，一位正直的记者可以对选举结果产生影响。在战争中，一位有能力的记者可以影响战争的结果，“

“This makes them a target, and increasingly the tools of their trade [are] being used against them. Our technology is beginning to betray us not just as individuals but as classes of workers, particularly those who are putting a lot on the line in the public interest.”

“这使记者们成为目标，而且记者的职业工具也越来越被用来对付他们自身。我们的技术已经开始背叛我们，不仅背叛个人，而且背叛工人阶层，特别是那些为了公众利益、在通话中透露大量信息的人。”

Snowden and Huang are concentrating on working with Apple’s iPhone, but also said the device could be modified to work on other smartphones. Apple has not responded to a request for comment.

斯诺登和Huang专注于研究在苹果公司的手机上使用该装置，但他们也表示该装置可以改装后在其他智能手机上运行。苹果公司尚未对此置评。