:ANT catalog

The Tailored Access Operations unit has existed since the late 1990s. Its mission is to collect intelligence on foreign targets of the United States by hacking into computers and telecommunication networks.{{Cite web|last=Aid|first=Matthew M.|author-link=Matthew Aid|title=Inside the NSA's Ultra-Secret China Hacking Group|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2013/06/10/inside-the-nsas-ultra-secret-china-hacking-group/|access-date=2022-02-12|website=Foreign Policy|language=en-US|archive-date=2022-02-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212231030/https://foreignpolicy.com/2013/06/10/inside-the-nsas-ultra-secret-china-hacking-group/|url-status=live}} It has been speculated for years before that capabilities like those in the ANT catalog existed.

In 2012, Edward Snowden organized a CryptoParty together with Runa Sandvik, a former colleague of Jacob Appelbaum at The Tor Project. In June 2013, Snowden took internal NSA documents which he shared with Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, resulting in the global surveillance disclosures.{{Cite web |last=Kelley |first=Michael B. |title=We Now Know A Lot More About Edward Snowden's Epic Heist — And It's Troubling |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/snowden-took-level-1-and-level-3-documents-2014-8 |access-date=2022-04-06 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-04-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406152752/https://www.businessinsider.com/snowden-took-level-1-and-level-3-documents-2014-8 |url-status=live }}

Jacob Appelbaum co-authored the English publication in Der Spiegel with {{Interlanguage link|Christian Stöcker|de|3=Christian Stöcker}} and Judith Horchert, which was publicized on 29 December 2013.{{Cite news |last1=Appelbaum |first1=Jacob |author-link=Jacob Appelbaum |last2=Horchert |first2=Judith |last3=Stöcker |first3=Christian |date=2013-12-29 |title=Catalog Advertises NSA Toolbox |language=en |work=Der Spiegel |url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/catalog-reveals-nsa-has-back-doors-for-numerous-devices-a-940994.html |url-status=live |access-date=2021-12-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104003518/https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/catalog-reveals-nsa-has-back-doors-for-numerous-devices-a-940994.html |archive-date=2014-01-04 |issn=2195-1349 }} The related English publication on the same day about the TAO by Der Spiegel was also authored by the same people, and including Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, {{Interlanguage link|Jörg Schindler (journalist)|lt=Jörg Schindler|de|Jörg Schindler (Journalist)}} and {{Interlanguage link|Holger Stark (journalist)|lt=Holger Stark|de|Holger Stark (Journalist)}}.{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2013-12-29 |title=Documents Reveal Top NSA Hacking Unit |language=en |work=Der Spiegel |url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/the-nsa-uses-powerful-toolbox-in-effort-to-spy-on-global-networks-a-940969.html |url-status=live |access-date=2022-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206174514/http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/the-nsa-uses-powerful-toolbox-in-effort-to-spy-on-global-networks-a-940969-2.html |archive-date=2019-02-06 |issn=2195-1349}} On December 30, Appelbaum gave a lecture about "the militarization of the Internet" at the 30th Chaos Communication Congress in Hamburg, Germany.{{cite web|title=Vortrag: To Protect And Infect, Part 2 - The militarization of the Internet|url=https://fahrplan.events.ccc.de/congress/2013/Fahrplan/events/5713.html|website=ccc.de|access-date=2021-12-18|archive-date=2021-11-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211102195140/https://fahrplan.events.ccc.de/congress/2013/Fahrplan/events/5713.html|url-status=live}} At the end of his talk, he encouraged NSA employees to leak more documents.{{cite web|last=Storm|first=Darlene|title=17 exploits the NSA uses to hack PCs, routers and servers for surveillance|url=https://www.computerworld.com/article/2474275/17-exploits-the-nsa-uses-to-hack-pcs--routers-and-servers-for-surveillance.html|website=Computerworld|date=3 January 2014|access-date=2021-12-18|archive-date=2021-12-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218171948/https://www.computerworld.com/article/2474275/17-exploits-the-nsa-uses-to-hack-pcs--routers-and-servers-for-surveillance.html|url-status=live}}

Apple denied the allegations that it collaborated on the development of DROPOUTJEEP in a statement to journalist Arik Hesseldahl from All Things Digital (part of The Wall Street Journal's Digital Network).{{Cite web|last=Hesseldahl|first=Arik|title=Apple Denies Working with NSA on iPhone Backdoor|url=https://allthingsd.com/20131231/apple-says-it-is-unaware-of-nsas-iphone-backdoor/|access-date=2021-12-18|website=AllThingsD|language=en-US|archive-date=2022-02-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224211934/https://allthingsd.com/20131231/apple-says-it-is-unaware-of-nsas-iphone-backdoor/|url-status=live}} The Verge questioned how the program developed in later years, since the document was composed in the early period of the iPhone and smartphones in general.{{Cite web|last=Robertson|first=Adi|date=2013-12-31|title=Apple denies any knowledge of NSA's iPhone surveillance implant|url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/12/31/5260990/apple-denies-any-knowledge-of-nsas-iphone-surveillance-implant|access-date=2021-12-18|website=The Verge|language=en|archive-date=2021-12-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218173441/https://www.theverge.com/2013/12/31/5260990/apple-denies-any-knowledge-of-nsas-iphone-surveillance-implant|url-status=live}} Dell denied collaborating with any government in general, including the US government. John Stewart, senior vice president and chief security officer of Cisco stated that they were "deeply concerned and will continue to pursue all avenues to determine if we need to address any new issues." Juniper stated that they were working actively to address any possible exploit paths. Huawei stated they would take appropriate audits to determine if any compromise had taken place and would communicate if so. NSA declined to comment on the publication by Der Spiegel.{{Cite web |last1=Bent |first1=Kristin |last2=Spring |first2=Tom |date=2013-12-30 |title=Dell, Cisco 'Deeply Concerned' Over NSA Backdoor Exploit Allegations |url=https://www.crn.com/news/security/240165053/dell-cisco-deeply-concerned-over-nsa-backdoor-exploit-allegations.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407000231/https://www.crn.com/news/security/240165053/dell-cisco-deeply-concerned-over-nsa-backdoor-exploit-allegations.htm |archive-date=2022-04-07 |access-date=2022-04-08 |website=CRN}}

Bruce Schneier wrote about the tools on his blog in a series titled "NSA Exploit of the Week". He stated that because of this, his website got blocked by the Department of Defense.{{Cite IETF|last=Farrell |first=Stephen |title=Reflections on Ten Years Past The Snowden Revelations |rfc=9446 |access-date=2023-10-28 |publisher=Internet Engineering Task Force |date=July 2023 |section=2 |sectionname=Bruce Schneier: Snowden Ten Years Later}}

Both Der Spiegel and Appelbaum have played an important role in the leaks of Edward Snowden, but neither clarified if the ANT catalog came from him.{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230233231/http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_NSA_SURVEILLANCE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-12-29-13-01-13|url=http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_NSA_SURVEILLANCE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-12-29-13-01-13|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 December 2013|website=Associated Press|title=Privacy advocate exposes NSA spy gear at gathering}} The source who leaked the ANT catalog to them is unknown as of {{Year}}.

Officials at the NSA did not believe that the web crawler used by Snowden touched the ANT catalog and started looking for other people who could have leaked the catalog.{{Cite book |last=Sanger |first=David E. |title=The perfect weapon: war, sabotage, and fear in the cyber age |title-link=The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage, and Fear in the Cyber Age |date=2018 |publisher=Crown Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-451-49789-5 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=74 |oclc=1039082430 |author-link=David E. Sanger}}

Author James Bamford, who is specialized in the United States intelligence agencies, noted in a 2016 commentary article that Appelbaum has not identified the source who leaked the ANT catalog to him, which led people to mistakenly assume it was Edward Snowden. Bamford got unrestricted access to the documents cache from Edward Snowden and could not find any references to the ANT catalog using automated search tools, thereby concluding that the documents were not leaked by him.{{Cite news|last=Bamford|first=James|author-link=James Bamford|date=2016-08-22|title=Commentary: Evidence points to another Snowden at the NSA|language=en|agency=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-intelligence-nsa-commentary-idUSKCN10X01P|access-date=2022-02-09|archive-date=2022-02-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224013929/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-intelligence-nsa-commentary-idUSKCN10X01P|url-status=live}} Security expert Bruce Schneier has stated on his blog that he also believes the ANT catalog did not come from Snowden, but from a second leaker.{{cite web|last=Pasick|first=Adam|date=4 July 2014|title=The NSA may have another leaker on its hands|url=https://qz.com/230329/the-nsa-may-have-another-leaker-on-its-hands/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023103142/https://qz.com/230329/the-nsa-may-have-another-leaker-on-its-hands/|archive-date=23 October 2014|access-date=7 February 2022|website=Quartz}}

The published catalog pages were written between 2008 and 2009. The price of the items ranged from free up to $250,000.

Security expert Matt Suiche noted that the software exploits leaked by the Shadow Brokers could be seen as genuine because it matched with names from the ANT catalog.{{Cite web|last=Hackett|first=Robert|title=Hackers Have Allegedly Stolen NSA-Linked 'Cyber Weapons' and Are Auctioning Them Off|url=https://fortune.com/2016/08/16/nsa-hack-auction-shadow-brokers-cyber-weapons/|access-date=2021-12-18|website=Fortune|language=en|archive-date=2021-12-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218184119/https://fortune.com/2016/08/16/nsa-hack-auction-shadow-brokers-cyber-weapons/|url-status=live}} John Bumgarner has stated to IEEE Spectrum that US government suspicion of Huawei is based on its own ability to add backdoors as shown in the ANT catalog.{{Cite web|last=Hsu|first=Jeremy|date=2014-03-26|title=U.S. Suspicions of China's Huawei Based Partly on NSA's Own Spy Tricks|url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/us-suspicions-of-chinas-huawei-based-partly-on-nsas-own-spy-tricks|access-date=2021-12-21|website=IEEE Spectrum|language=en|archive-date=2021-12-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221103136/https://spectrum.ieee.org/us-suspicions-of-chinas-huawei-based-partly-on-nsas-own-spy-tricks|url-status=live}}

The NSA Playset is an open-source project inspired by the NSA ANT catalog to create more accessible and easy to use tools for security researchers. Most of the surveillance tools can be recreated with off-the-shelf or open-source hardware and software. Thus far, the NSA Playset consists of fourteen items, for which the code and instructions can be found online on the project's homepage. After the initial leak, Michael Ossman, the founder of Great Scott Gadgets, gave a shout out to other security researchers to start working on the tools mentioned in the catalog and to recreate them. The name NSA Playset came originally from Dean Pierce, who is also a contributor (TWILIGHTVEGETABLE(GSM)) to the NSA Playset. Anyone is invited to join and contribute their own device. The requisites for an addition to the NSA Playset is a similar or already existing NSA ANT project, ease of use and a silly name (based on the original tool's name if possible). The silly name requisite is a rule that Michael Ossman himself came up with and an example is given on the project's website: "For example, if your project is similar to FOXACID, maybe you could call it COYOTEMETH." The ease of use part stems also from the NSA Playset's motto: "If a 10 year old can't do it, it doesn't count!"{{cite web|author=Lucy Teitler|date=November 17, 2014|title=Let's Play NSA! The Hackers Open-Sourcing Top Secret Spy Tools|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/michael-ossmann-and-the-nsa-playset/|publisher=Vice Motherboard|access-date=June 14, 2017|archive-date=February 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170225030520/https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/michael-ossmann-and-the-nsa-playset|url-status=live}}{{cite web|author=Violet Blue|date=June 11, 2014|title=NSA Playset invites hackers to 'play along with the NSA'|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/nsa-playset-invites-hackers-to-play-along-with-the-nsa/|publisher=ZDNet|access-date=June 15, 2017|archive-date=June 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170619034523/http://www.zdnet.com/article/nsa-playset-invites-hackers-to-play-along-with-the-nsa/|url-status=live}}{{cite web | url=http://ossmann.blogspot.co.at/2014/07/the-nsa-playset.html | publisher=Mossman's blog | title=The NSA Playset | date=July 31, 2014 | access-date=June 14, 2017 | author=Michael Ossmann | archive-date=December 28, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171228171520/http://ossmann.blogspot.co.at/2014/07/the-nsa-playset.html | url-status=live }}{{cite web|author=Sean Gallagher|date=August 11, 2015|title=The NSA Playset: Espionage tools for the rest of us|url=https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/08/the-nsa-playset-espionage-tools-for-the-rest-of-us/|publisher=Ars Technica|access-date=June 14, 2017|archive-date=September 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170922083309/https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/08/the-nsa-playset-espionage-tools-for-the-rest-of-us/|url-status=live}}

• Cyberwarfare in the United States
• Equation Group
• MiniPanzer and MegaPanzer
• Stuxnet
• WARRIOR PRIDE

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Cite web |last=Koop |first=Peter |title=Leaked documents that were not attributed to Snowden |url=https://www.electrospaces.net/2015/12/leaked-documents-that-were-not.html |access-date=2022-04-12 |publisher=Electrospaces.net |language=en |archive-date=2022-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224174558/https://www.electrospaces.net/2015/12/leaked-documents-that-were-not.html |url-status=live }}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.nsaplayset.org/ NSA Playset wiki] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130151012/http://www.nsaplayset.org/ |date=2023-01-30 }}
• [https://www.blackhat.com/docs/us-15/materials/us-15-Ossmann-The-NSA-Playset-A-Year-Of-Toys-And-Tools.pdf The NSA Playset a Year of toys and tools] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120035708/https://www.blackhat.com/docs/us-15/materials/us-15-Ossmann-The-NSA-Playset-A-Year-Of-Toys-And-Tools.pdf |date=2022-01-20 }} at Black Hat 2015
• [http://ossmann.com/ossmann-pierce-toorcamp2014.pdf NSA Playset] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211218171948/http://ossmann.com/ossmann-pierce-toorcamp2014.pdf |date=2021-12-18 }} at Toorcamp 2014

{{National Security Agency}}

Category:Der Spiegel

Category:Espionage devices

Category:National Security Agency

Category:Spyware used by governments

Category:Surveillance