Cyprus-Forum.com

[JustAnAmerican]

Actually Lana’s old coworkers would get more bang for their buck by picking up the stray voice conversations of people on the way to lunch in Nicosia.

The only nearly unbreakable encryption is one in which the keys are used by each distant communicating end and the keys are personally exchanged on a periodic basis. A system in which the key itself is useless if intercepted.

(Not many people know that Henry the VIII killed Mary Queen of Scott, after her messages were intercepted. They were nailed to the bottom of an empty water barrel. She forgot the basic law of sending messages - make sure the information in the message is useless if found. She had no way of encrypting the message and could not maintain any kind of key exchange while held in the Tower of London.)

As for us today, then is it up to your curious enemies as to what form does the key come in paper, plastic, or metal. So Igor, Ivan, and Misha want to jump me on the way from the plane, ship, or car, they will have to know what they are looking for and who they are looking for.

Inside the key there is a complex algorithm that only works in a specialized device that is connected to the data network. This kind of key-exchange is very difficult to break because you do not know what number to start with and you have no idea how long the number is.

The Enigma only had three to six wheels of 26 characters – which gave you a little over 30 million letter combinations. Just 56 bit Encryption has over 100,000,000,000,000,000 key combinations and it was invented in the mid-70s. Commercially we are up to 1,024 bit these days, so who knows how high the key number is now?

The term Echelon - or the collection of Open Source data from electronic emissions exists, well it exists in many countries.

[Svetlana]

I think Sotos was referring to THE ECHELON - rather than a generic network of intelligence gathering computers.

Yes, Echelon is 'supported' in Cyprus; it is a brilliant listening post to monitor North Africa, the Mediterranean and the Near East. Echelon comprises: US (NSA), UK (GCHQ), Canada (CSE), New Zealand (GCSB) and Australia (DSD).

( In Paphos, most intelligence gathering is done in Kafeneons!)

Lana

[dms007]

so svetlana what sort of spying do you do? who do you work for?

[Svetlana]

Now I work in 'commercial intelligence' and marketing.

Lana

[dms007]

[quote] Now I work in 'commercial intelligence' [\quote]

what exactly is 'commerical intelligence' and what were you working as earlier?

[Maria28]

Svetlana, is this your real name?

Isn't it a bit strange to declare publicly your "profession"? Wouldn't a real spy pretend to be somebody else?

[Svetlana]

I am not a SPY, I run a commercial company! However, I worked for a Government Intelligence organisation, before coming to Cyprus; in the true spirit of 'Glasnost' such things are no longer kept secret.

Years ago, suitable candidates for such work were 'identified' at University or by Polit Bureau members and 'invited'; nowadays Intelligence organisations advertise in the paper for recruits!

Lana

[stuff]

hi Svetlana,

ı must be stupid cos ı still couldnt understand what exactly u do for a living!
well but u r not a spy right?....

[Sotos]

She is a former usual spy and now she is an industrial spy. Which means she pretends to work for your company while she is stealing your secrets giving them to your competitors!

[Angel Eyes]

Hiya I look after children which I really enjoy I've alway's liked and wanted children so since I don't have any of my own (yet) im very happy with this line of work......Also, one of my friend's has recently took over a Bar/Restaurant so I work there as Manager.....Like I say it is only recently he has taken this on so there is alot of work to be done (basically starting from scratch) and Im sure that time will tell if it work's out.....(here's hoping) Anyway, I just want to say, I think this is an interesting topic and Lana, by the sound's of thing's, I would love to be in that line of work, (spy), I think it would be very interesting