Last Thursday, Apr 6, the U.S.A. conducted airstrikes against Syrian Arab Republic together with president Trump received a briefing on this assault at his Mar-a-Lago estate inwards West Palm Beach, Florida. The adjacent day, his press secretarial assistant Sean Spicer tweeted a photograph of this briefing, which shows unopen to hitherto unseen together with futuristic looking devices:
Trump together with his squad of policy makers at Mar-a-Lago. Apr 6, 2017
(White House photograph - click to enlarge)
In the photograph nosotros view unopen to sort of modest invitee or spare room amongst a rather narrow tabular array together with inexpensive chairs of the type that tin last rented for events. At the far correct side at that topographic point seem to last nighttime curtains, indicating at that topographic point may last windows.
As was pointed out yesteryear Sean Spicer, the photograph was redacted for safety reasons: the content of the documents was erased. CNN provided a version of this photograph showing who all the persons inwards the room are:
(click to enlarge)
Not acquaint inwards the room were vice president Mike Pence, secretarial assistant of defense forcefulness James Mattis together with chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, full general Joseph Dunford, but they participated from Washington DC via secure video teleconference, according to Spicer.
The photograph clearly is an imitation of the famous motion-picture present showing old president Barack Obama amongst his national safety squad monitoring the killing of Osama bin Laden inwards the White House Situation Room inwards May 2011. The Trump motion-picture present is fifty-fifty shot from the same angle equally the Obama one:
President Obama together with his national safety squad watching the killing of
Osama bin Laden inwards the White House Situation Room. May 1, 2011.
(White House photograph yesteryear Pete Souza - click to enlarge)
Video teleconferencing
The large concealment seen on the left side of the Mar-a-Lago photograph tin last identified equally the Cisco TelePresence System EX90 amongst high-definition video screen, modified for TEMPEST protection yesteryear CIS Secure Computing. The organization includes a smaller touchscreen device which is used to command the video teleconference calls.
Mysterious devices
Much to a greater extent than intriguing are the white devices amongst unopen to sort of dark concealment or speaker, 2 yesteryear 2 connected to a larger primal device yesteryear 2 cables each. Only for president Trump there's a unlike device inwards silvery grey, in all likelihood amongst a display folded up:
On the internet, at that topographic point was speculation most the purpose of the mysterious devices. Some suggested that it could last modest displays or microphone/speakers, but that seems less likely. Displays of that size would hardly add together whatever useful functions together with for such a modest grouping there's no demand for microphones and/or speakers inwards forepart of every participant: present i unmarried conference phone unit of measurement is sufficient for much larger conference tables (and the large Cisco EX90 concealment has built-in microphones too).
Update:
In a thread on Reddit, someone said that the "hardened EX90 doesnt genuinely pick out proficient microphone pickups, hence nosotros pick out to run a few external microphones thru the 1/8 mini microphone jack. Now they went a trivial crazy amongst the mic's but prolly went overboard because didnt desire anyone complaining most non beingness heard. What you lot view is a Mini XLR cable together with Sheilded POE cable that goes from each base of operations station to the next."
However, another thread on Reddit is somewhat to a greater extent than inwards favor of jammer devices (see below).
There's also no argue why at that topographic point should last such a serial of devices when it comes to encryption: both video together with good from the measure Cisco equipment tin easily last encrypted yesteryear a unmarried network encryptor, similar from General Dynamics's TACLANE series. In this way, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) provides secure video teleconferencing over its Secret (SIPRNet) together with Top Secret/SCI (JWICS) networks.
Voice masking?
Another selection for the black-and-white boxes is that they may non last used for picking upward audio, but for masking it. With a technique called voice, speech communication or sound masking, a special device generates noise, preferably according to an algorithm that is adjusted to human speech. This racket is distributed through a discover of emitters inwards monastic tell to mask the voices of people who are for illustration engaged inwards confidential conversations.
Such a purpose could explicate the modular set-up of the mysterious devices inwards the Mar-a-Lago room: the larger ones inwards the middle of the tabular array could together with hence last for producing a measure vocalization masking noise, piece the modest ones may fifty-fifty last capable of adjusting the racket to the vocalization of that particular person.
(click to play)
Several companies sell vocalization masking systems, but on their websites at that topographic point aren't devices similar to those inwards Trump's room. So there's no proof that they are for vocalization masking, but perhaps readers of this weblog tin furnish to a greater extent than information.
Interesting is that i seller claims that their equipment uses the M2 algorithm, which is specially for U.S. of A. together with NATO contractor companies, together with U.S. of A. together with Five Eyes(!) governments tin contact the fellowship for "further vocalization masking options."
In the 2015 Technical Specifications for SCIF Construction (pdf) it is said that inwards instance the normal structure of a room doesn't furnish the necessary acoustic protection, "sound masking devices, inwards conjunction amongst an amplifier together with speakers or transducers" tin last used inwards monastic tell to foreclose classified discussions from beingness overheard yesteryear unauthorized persons.
Figures showing that the spectrum of SpeechMask is adjusted to
the actual qualities of human speech communication than broadband racket is.
(graphic: speechmasking.com - click to enlarge)
A Mar-a-Lago SCIF?
This brings us to the safety of the room inwards which the coming together took place. According to Trump's press secretary, the photograph shows a SCIF, which stands for Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) tin last stored, processed, viewed and/or discussed without beingness intercepted from the outside.
People were wondering whether the Mar-a-Lago residence genuinely had such a SCIF, specially later Trump together with his advisors held an "open-air province of affairs room" coming together on the terrace of the resort, inwards forepart of monastic tell members together with waiters, when Democratic People's South Korea fired a missile inwards February.
It seems that amongst the photograph from Thursday, press secretarial assistant Spicer wants to present that for sensitive regime trouble concern Mar-a-Lago does pick out a SCIF. But this isn't real convincing. Everything seems hastily arranged for this occasion, given the rather uncomfortable chairs together with the strange sign taped onto the door, which says "QUIET AREA" - non clear whether that applies to the room nosotros view or the room behind the door:
And if the mysterious white devices are indeed for vocalization masking, that would also signal that the room isn't fully qualified equally a permanent SCIF - else at that topographic point would last no demand for installing such equipment. At best, this room is a (temporary) Secure Working Area (SWA), which is an accredited facility "used for discussing, handling, and/or processing SCI, but where SCI volition non last stored."
With Donald Trump having spent already 8 of the xi weekends of his presidency at Mar-a-Lago, it's unusual that there's manifestly even hence no proper SCIF amongst corporation walls together with without windows, together with only i door amongst a high-security lock - shouldn't last likewise hard to create for the existent estate human of affairs similar Trump was.
By contrast, president George W. Bush had a special edifice on his ranch inwards Crawford, Texas that was used equally a SCIF, modeled similar a conference room inwards the White House Situation Room, amongst comfortable chairs together with all the necessary communications equipment for secure together with non-secure telephone calls equally good equally for video teleconferencing:
George W. Bush inwards the SCIF on his ranch inwards Texas. Dec 29, 2004.
(White House photo)
On the same twenty-four hours equally the airstrike against Syria, president Trump also received the Chinese president Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago, which at to the lowest degree led to visitors of the monastic tell beingness warned non to usage prison theatre cellular telephone phones when the president was near. Also at that topographic point were enough of underground service agents around, according to local intelligence reports.
Mar-a-Lago isn't only Trump's individual opor-garai residence, but also a monastic tell resort that is opened upward to paying members together with ticketed guests, staffed yesteryear workers without the same safety clearances equally White House staff, which makes the house vulnerable to infiltration and/or eavesdropping yesteryear unusual intelligence.
Links
- NBC News: What Is a SCIF together with Who Uses It?
- BBC: Decoding the Trump 'war room' photograph
- Quartz: Trump created a makeshift Situation Room at Mar-a-Lago for a briefing on the Syrian Arab Republic bombing
- Motherboard: What the Heck Are These Electronic Devices inwards Trump's Situation Room?
- National Counterintelligence together with Security Center: Technical Specifications for Construction together with Management of Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (pdf)
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar