Being able to secretly watch women in various states of undress was the fantasy of many Porky’s fans (hell, it probably still is). But when it comes to doing so with modern technology instead of excitedly peering through a hole in the wall of the women’s shower, the stakes are higher as concerns about privacy and identity theft become more common. One such Peeping Tom learned that the hard way recently, after installing software on a woman’s computer that allowed him to use the camera on her machine to secretly take some 20,000 photos of her and her friends.
It all started when Marisel Garcia started having laptop problems while visiting friends in Gainesville, Florida, last month. Her friends recommended going to a student at the University of Florida who was known for his computer-fixing skills, 23-year-old Craig Matthew Feigin. She left the machine with him overnight and went on her way—until she noticed her computer having new issues several weeks later. In addition to reduced battery life, Garcia told the Gainesville Sun that her laptop’s light turned on every time she got near it—a light that many of us know signals that the built-in camera is in use.
Garcia then took her machine to another computer expert—a trusted friend this time—who discovered that Feigin had installed two pieces of software onto her machine: Log Me In and Web Cam Spy Hacker. Web Cam Spy Hacker may have been written by Feigin himself (the address on the site was the same as his home address), and it allowed him to upload the various photos taken on the machine to a remote server. Unfortunately for Garcia, that included 20,000 photos of her, her friends, and her boyfriend. Since the laptop mostly resided in her bedroom, some of them were taken while she was not clothed.
Feigin apparently wasted little time ‘fessing up to the deeds and even told police that he had installed the software on other women’s computers too. “We have eight or nine more potential victims that we know of now,” Gainesville Police detective Joseph Mayo told the newspaper. Feigin was arrested late last week and was held in jail on Friday night on a $20,000 bond. He was charged with modifying computer data and disrupting or denying computer system services which, according to Florida Statute 815.06 on computer-related crimes, could be treated as a felony and punishable by prison time.
Although experienced computer users may be able to keep tabs on every program installed on their machines and might readily notice peeping Tom spyware, less-savvy users are less likely to keep a detailed list or even remember what half the apps on their machines are supposed to do in the first place. Garcia’s experience is a reminder that, if you have a webcam, keep an eye out for that light!
[tags]webcam hacker, maricel garcia, marisel garcia, woman s computer spies on her, marisol garcia [/tags]