Ntrepid
Ntrepid is an American software, hardware, and cyber security company, registered in Florida and based in Herndon, Virginia.[1][2][3]
Type | Software, hardware, and cyber security company |
---|---|
Founded | October 25, 2010 |
Headquarters | , U.S. |
Products | Passages ION Nfusion Timestream Tartan Virtus ELUSIV |
Subsidiaries | Anonymizer |
Website | ntrepidcorp |
History
In 2008, the Anonymizer company was acquired by the Abraxas Corporation, which was purchased by Cubic in 2010 for $124 million.[4] Some of Abraxas' former employees left to form Ntrepid that same year.[4] Lance Cottrell, founder of Anonymizer, is the chief scientist at Ntrepid.[5] Anonymizer is wholly owned by Ntrepid.[6][7]
Military contract
In March 2011, Ntrepid won a $2.76 million contract from the U.S. military for "online persona management."[2] The contract was for the creation of technology which would allow for blogging activities on websites, exclusively outside of the United States, to "counter violent extremist and enemy propaganda."[6][8] It would allow for one operator to anonymously create and control up to ten personas from one computer.[3]
The project is overseen by U.S. Central Command (Centcom), whose spokesman Commander Bill Speaks stated that the operation would be carried out in Arabic, Persian, and Urdu.[2]
The project is thought to be connected with Operation Earnest Voice.[2]
References
- "Business Entity Detail: Ntrepid Corporation". California Secretary of State. Archived from the original on 2 April 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
- Nick Fielding and Ian Cobain, "Revealed: US spy operation that manipulates social media", The Guardian, March 17, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- Alex Spillius, "Pentagon buys social networking 'spy software'", The Telegraph, March 17, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- "Anonymizer tied to company selling TrapWire surveillance to governments". Network World. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- "Using System Fingerprints to Track Attackers". Tripwire. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- Shaun Waterman, "U.S. Central Command ‘friending’ the enemy in psychological war", Washington Times, March 1, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- "Examining the ties between TrapWire, Abraxas and Anonymizer". ZDNet. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- "US Military Propagandizes Social Media With Fake Accounts". Vox News. Retrieved 22 April 2014.