ANB reacts to CIN-CG article: The impression is created that the software solution is a wiretapping system, which is not true

The public is being given the impression, through the form of anonymous reports, that the software solution for centralized management of official mobile devices is actually a system for eavesdropping or secret surveillance of officials, which is not true, the National Security Agency (ANB) announced.

The institution reacted to an article published on the Vijesti portal under the title "CIN-CG "Watch out, you're being filmed: ANB employees file criminal charges with the SDT over suspicions of illegal surveillance."

We transmit the response in full:

Regarding publicly released allegations based on the contents of anonymous criminal reports and addresses to the control and supervision entities of the National Security Agency, we consider it our obligation to inform the public of the real facts, as well as the broader security context of such actions.

In this specific case, the public is given the impression, through the form of anonymous reports, that the software solution for centralized management of official mobile devices is actually a system for eavesdropping or secret surveillance of officials.

That is incorrect.

It is a standard tool for managing and protecting official devices, applications, and data. Such solutions are used by government institutions, large companies, healthcare, education, finance, hotel, and airline sectors, as well as organizations that need to centrally protect official devices, applications, and data.

Its purpose is to protect official phones from loss, theft, unauthorized access, installation of risky applications, compromise of communication channels and leakage of confidential official data. Such systems are not "spyware", they are not intended for secret eavesdropping, switching on microphones and cameras, or reading the content of protected communications.

An official device is not private property, but a means of work that, if not protected, can pose a serious risk to national security. Presenting a standard cybersecurity protocol as a tool for illegal espionage may have the effect of creating pressure on the institution to abandon the protection of official devices and communications, thereby opening the door to the actual compromise of confidential data.

The Agency will, as before, fully cooperate with all competent authorities that have the right to verify the legality of its work.

At the same time, the Agency considers it an obligation to point out a broader pattern of activity that can be recognized in the modern security environment. Inundating the prosecution and oversight bodies with unfounded or incorrectly filed anonymous reports can constitute an abuse of state institutions. Such reports can have the effect of creating a basis that is then used to create the appearance of an affair, exhaust resources and put pressure on the security sector.

Such a method implies that an unverified or erroneous thesis is first placed through an anonymous report or a similar formal act, then the very fact that the report was filed is presented as publicly relevant information, and then a narrative about the alleged affair is built on that basis.

In this regard, the Agency highly respects the role and importance of the media, and especially investigative journalism, in a democratic society. The right of journalists to ask questions and inform the public is unquestionable. That is why it is important to clearly distinguish the work of the media from possible attempts by individuals or interest groups to misuse the media space by providing selective, incomplete or misinterpreted information in order to achieve goals that are not in the public interest.

The right to whistleblowing and protection of conscientious officials must not be a cover for anonymously placing unfounded claims. Resistance to introducing stricter protection of official devices and data, when disguised as an alleged concern for privacy, may indicate the existence of structures that are comfortable with a vulnerable security system from which data can be easily and undetectedly extracted.

The Agency will, in accordance with its legal competences, also examine the security context of such activities, including the question of whether they are isolated reports or part of a broader pattern of actions aimed at compromising the institution, causing internal distrust and weakening the data protection system.

Such patterns, if they exist, are particularly important at a time of intensive reform, strengthening the Agency's operational, analytical and technical capacities, as well as achieving concrete results in protecting national security. A strengthened and protected Agency can represent an obstacle to achieving the goals of all those who benefit from a weak, vulnerable and compromised security system.

The National Security Agency will not succumb to pressure or give up on further strengthening cyber and operational protection. Any attempt to present the protection of national interests as an illegal act will be considered with the full attention required by the protection of the constitutional order, security and strategic interests of Montenegro.

Citizens' trust is built on facts and responsibility, and the Agency is ready to fully investigate every issue, legally and factually, with full institutional commitment, while protecting the constitutional order, national security and interests of Montenegro.