WHY IS IT WATCHING YOU?

 

If someone is spying on your computer screen, there’s all sorts of information they could be capturing. They could be recording every single thing you do. Usernames, passwords, bank account numbers, secret questions, private e-mails—all these things are vulnerable.

It’s unlikely the government would use this technique to spy on you. For federal spooks and local police, there are easier ways to gain access to your computer, like getting a warrant and just taking your machine.

Van Eck phreaking is too technically sophisticated and time consuming for your typical criminal. Focusing surveillance on a single person on the chance of acquiring valuable financial data is a long game with low rewards. Sophisticated computer crooks are going to rely on malicious software rather than high-tech surveillance so that they can hit multiple targets at once.

If you’ve got a stalker willing to resort to this, then you’re in trouble. This is an individual with above-average intelligence and technical skill. If you’re being stalked by someone with the time, know-how, and money to engage in Van Eck surveillance, chances are you’re only a few days away from being tied to a bed in a cabin and forced to write a novel.