Report claims Windows error reporting system bugged by NSA, Microsoft denies it

Now, take this report with a grain of salt. The report comes out of Germany and the claims are a bit farfetched. But you be the judge. According to a new report coming from Germany’s Der Spiegel, the US National Security Agency (NSA) has been working with the CIA and FBI to intercept computers and other electronics being purchased online before delivery. The reason? To install malware and other spyware tools. On top of that, the NSA is allegedly tapping into the error reporting system in Windows.

According to the report, hackers exploited the weakness in the error reporting message feature of Windows. For those who do not recall, this error message feature pops up whenever an application crashes. Information is gathered and subsequently sent to Microsoft engineers in an attempt to find a fix.

However, the NSA is allegedly tapping into this mechanism and using it to capture data sent out from the computer. Microsoft, on the other hand, denies that this is even happening. “Microsoft does not provide any Government with direct or unfettered access to our customers’ data. We would have significant concerns if the allegations about Government actions are true,” the company spokesperson told CNBC in a statement.

The NSA is also reportedly intercepting computer shipments and diverting them to a secret NSA workshops where specific software is installed so NSA agents can track users remotely. According to Der Spiegel, this technique is known as “interdiction” and is the NSA’s “most productive” operation.

You can head over to Der Spiegel to read the full report.