MOSCOW, June 2. /TASS/. Western special services have the capability to access smartphones and other devices, Alexander Perelygin, a retired FSB Major General, said in a video released by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).

Following the September 11, 2001 terror attack, the United States made it mandatory for all IT companies to allow American special services access to data for the alleged sake of national security, Perelygin, a Candidate of Law Sciences, recalled. In real life, smartphones act as a special technical instrument for hacking data, he argued.

"The fact that our country and the entire world have embraced this technology, gives us grounds to believe that Western, mostly North American companies, are key players in this sphere. They have the right to hack, tap into and so on. And we understand that they have tools for direct interference, including by special services - not necessarily American but also British or of any other jurisdiction. There may be very strong cooperation between Western special services," Perelygin maintained.

After a smartphone has been tapped, a special technology can be used for processing huge volumes of data using artificial intelligence (AI), he warned. All this helps identify patterns in people’s activity, events or hidden plans, Perelygin explained. "As an expert in counterintelligence specializing in combating enemy agents, I can tell you that this presents a golden opportunity to carry out intelligence work on Russian soil against our country," he emphasized.

Citizens should beware that gadgets pose a real threat, including to national security, Perelygin warned.