WikiLeaks Publishes CIA Anti-Whistleblowers Tool for Microsoft Office Documents

Today, WikiLeaks continued its ”Vault 7” campaign by dumping another set of CIA files, but this time around, the organization also included the tool’s source code, something they have not leaked in previous data dumps.Today’s leak is a Windows tool that watermarks documents against whistleblowers. Dubbed Scribble, the tool is coded in C# and works by embedding a beacon inside Microsoft Office documents.When a person opens a file watermarked with Scribble, the document automatically loads an image hosted on the document owner’s server (in this case, the CIA).Scribble is a document mass-watermarking utilityThe HTTP request is logged on the server, and by keeping an eye on the server log, the CIA can see who, when, and from where is opening watermarked documents.The purpose of such a tool is obvious, as the CIA might be trying to track documents that are likely to be copied by insiders, whistleblowers, journalists, leakers, or others.In addition, the tool could also be deployed in field operations, as a way to track the activity and location of persons of interest, based on their IP address (if the target is not using proxies or Tor).

Källa: WikiLeaks Publishes CIA Anti-Whistleblowers Tool for Microsoft Office Documents