Theft of confidential information is costing companies millions of pounds every year. Often the loss of your secrets will show up in very subtle ways so you should always trust your instincts in this matter.
When your competitors know things that are obviously private or the media finds out about things they should not know then it is reasonable to suspect technical eavesdropping or bugging has occurred. Confidential meetings and bids are very popular targets for corporate spies.
How would you like the plans for the corporate takeovers you are planning to become public knowledge? Would copies of your product designs be of any use to your competitors? Would it be beneficial for your competitors to know how much you are quoting for the same project?
Professional eavesdroppers often break into a target’s home or office and very rarely leave direct evidence of the break-in, however, occupants of the premises will often “pick up on something not being right” such as the furniture being moved slightly. You can be the victim of a burglary but nothing notable was taken.
The smoke detector, clock, lamp or exit sign in your office or home looks slightly crooked, has a small hole in the surface, or has a reflective surface: Certain types of items have “just appeared” in your office but nobody seems to know how they got there.
Accepting gifts can be dangerous and these “gifts” are actually Trojan horses which contain eavesdropping devices. Be very suspicious of any kind of pen, marker, briefcase, calculator, “post-it” dispenser, power adapter, pager, clock, radio, lamp, and so on that is given as a gift. That innocent gift that came in the post from the company you’ve always had gifts from may not be what you think it is.