Nordic Companies are exposed to espionage – without any laws being broken

Nordic companies are increasingly targeted by industrial spies who operate within the bounds of the law. Under the guise of job interviews, reference checks or research inquiries, they engage employees in seemingly routine interactions designed to extract sensitive information without raising alarm. These are the warning signs to look out for.

In recent years, international media has revelead how various types of private intelligence and consulting firms are used to collect sensitive information about individuals and companies in order to gain ethically or morally questionable advantages, and sometimes even for outright criminal purposes. This can involve gathering confidential information such as customer data, key intellectual property, internal legal analyses, or profiles of key personnel.

The examples often bring to mind sophisticated electronic surveillance and hacker attacks, but the fact is that much of modern industrial espionage is carried out with considerably simpler means. It involves methods for persuading individuals to share sensitive information, often without them even realising that they are being targeted. Even the most advanced cybersecurity offers no defence when critical details are given away voluntarily.

Look Closer offers services to help organisations detect and counter such threats. We have been engaged to uncover and stop ongoing cases as well as train employees to spot signs of coming attacks. Our experience is that Nordic companies are targets of these types of attacks on an ongoing basis.

“Industrial espionage using legal but unethical methods is something Swedish companies are subjected to regularly. Companies spend enormous sums on protecting themselves against electronic intrusions, but it does not matter how strong your perimeter defense and IT security are if information leaks out through verbal contacts,” says Björn Modée, CEO of Look Closer.

Flattery and job offers – methods to gain access

A common and difficult-to-detect method involves approaching individuals under a false pretext, often in contexts that appear constructive, familiar, or benign. The interaction might take the form of a reference check, an interview for a non-existent job, or a student requesting input for a thesis. The real objective is to extract commercially valuable information. Because the potential value of the information sought can be very high, significant resources are invested in these projects. Preparations can take several months and projects may run for more than a year. The operators who make contact with the targets often have experience from various national intelligence services, such as MI6, DGSE, CIA, or Mossad.

To establish credibility, the industrial spy registers websites, email addresses, and social media profiles on platforms like LinkedIn. A common method is to create a fake front, for instance presenting themselves as running a recruitment or event-production company. Once the façade is in place, agents begin making personal contacts within the target company and its network.

“You often start at the periphery, farther out in the organization, then work inward until you have extracted the information you are seeking. The targets does not realise they are being deceived, and if the spies are skilled, they remain unaware even afterward,” says an analyst at Look Closer with ten years of international industry experience, who now specialises in helping companies protect themselves against this type of attack.

Example: Recruitment firm as a cover

1. A fictitious recruitment firm is set up with its own website, email, and LinkedIn page.

2. Potential candidates within the target company are identified through publicly available information, such as social media and résumé databases. Former employees may also be of interest.

3. Contact is made with selected candidates to arrange online or in-person meetings. Multiple interviews, sometimes including meetings in exclusive settings in other countries, are conducted to extract as much information as possible from the individual.

4. The contact is concluded in a natural manner so that the person does not become suspicious.

This example illustrates one of the most common methods for gathering information from middle and lower levels of a company. When the targets hold higher positions – such as executive or board roles – the cover story often needs to be tailored in more detail. Recruitment can still be used, for example for prestigious board or advisory-board positions, but it may also involve lucrative consulting engagements.

The real cases studied by Look Closer show that these spy methods are difficult for companies to defend against. A fundamental requirement is that all employees have awareness of and understand the risks involved. A key preventive measure, is encouraging each individual to think twice before accepting an unsolicited interview request.

“Common sense and a degree of skepticism are often key success factors in defending against this kind of industrial espionage. By equipping employees with the tools to filter out dubious inquiries themselves, your company can achieve a basic level of protection that goes a long way,” says Björn Modée.

Look Closer offers training sessions and workshops where your company’s staff gain knowledge and practical experience about how to increase their awareness of verbal information-gathering risks and how to protect against them. We can also provide advice and investigations in active situations if you suspect an ongoing operation is targeting your company.

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