Police have begun busting a cabal of programmers who used malicious computer software known as a Trojan horse to spy on more than a dozen companies and then sell information about their operations to competitors.
Google's effort is centered on a team of more than 100 engineers led by Danger co-founder Andy Rubin, who have put Google's applications and Linux software into phone-friendly form (see " How To Spy On Google").
One of the most recent companies to get an infusion of cash from the U.S. spy bureau's investment fund is Cleversafe, a Chicago-based startup that offers software to keep data stored in cloud networks secure by slicing it up and storing it in different locations.