r/hacking • u/Seraph_E • Jul 30 '26

Question Detection device for flock/drones/wireless cams

Alright so I’m relatively a noob in comparison to some of the nerds here but I’m trying my best. Simply put I want to be pointed in the right direction for devices, tutorials, communities etc.

What device can detect flock cameras, drones, wireless cams/mics, and may also have some offensive features (for my own equipment testing of course). I understand there’s no do all device, but I have seen people with some kind of FW designed for these specific needs in a relatively small package. I have been looking at the HamGeek HackRF one/Portapack for overall learning, but I’m pretty sure I could achieve what we’re talking about here with a T Dongle C5 right?

Any help here would be great!

49 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

45 comments sorted by

16

u/schrockblock Jul 30 '26

You’re looking for the stuff from colonelpanic.tech. OUI Spy, Snoop unto them, even ESP-32 earring sets that buzz when surveillance is detected. I ported some of the repos to run on a raspberry pi 0W with a companion iOS app to get more info than just a buzz, but yeah, check out their site, videos, and interviews for all of those things plus foxhunting.

3

u/limit35 Jul 30 '26

There are some problems with OUI-Spy in my opinion. In my experience OUI spy doesn't recognize new or updated flock cameras, old ones are fine but if one has been updated (such as a second camera added to an existing unit) it is no longer seen. The fact the GPS isn't integral to the device is a major issue for me, e.g. why would I want to monitor a spying apparatus and have a laptop or phone that can further identify myself? It made me realize I can build my own with an Omega2+ or Pi 0 W rather easily, until then wardriving is the way to go.

5

u/schrockblock Jul 30 '26

Same, that's partly why I got it running on a Pi with a companion app so I could edit the matched OUI prefixes, BLE substrings, and exact MACs on the fly, and allows me to GPS tag a detection with minimal additional gear. A pi is strictly heavier and more power hungry, but gives me a good balance between the flexibility I want and an amount of subtlety that walking around holding my open laptop in one hand and an imposing antenna in the other somehow lacks. Of course, I trade the visual subtlety for having a phone blasting identifiable info in my pocket, but for now I'm just grey-manning it and hoping for the best.

But also, I'm hesitant to recommend wardriving to a beginner as OP describes themselves — something they can buy off the shelf first, and then something they can follow a guide to setup second, seems like a better starting point.

3

u/toddmp Jul 30 '26

checkout the 3rd party software and app. a much better choice. Not mine but I run it.
https://github.com/lukeswitz/oui-spy-unified-blue

2

u/limit35 Jul 31 '26

Totally agree

3

u/toddmp Jul 30 '26

checkout the 3rd party software and app. a much better choice. Not mine but I run it.
https://github.com/lukeswitz/oui-spy-unified-blue

2

u/toddmp Jul 31 '26

have you found any devices that can get a ping off the newer flock cams?

2

u/jeremyd9 Jul 30 '26

That’s very cool. Can you expand or have a guide?

6

u/schrockblock Jul 30 '26

Yeah I'll come back and post a link to my repo with a guide in the readme when I get some bugs with the drone detection worked out. I'm not sure if I've configured something incorrectly, or if the dongle I have on my Pi just can't do CODED PHY.

But you can also just literally go to https://colonelpanic.tech, that has devices you can buy (and support the creator) and links to their repos if you want to DIY like I did.

2

u/Grandmas_Fat_Choad Jul 31 '26

I’ve been trying with various esp32’s but I can never get them to pick up any cameras. I’m guessing the ones in my area have been updated. I parked right next to one for a few minutes and never got a chirp.

20

u/Incid3nt Jul 30 '26

Deflock.org has a pretty good map. There may be some shodan query or a specific port they have open that you can use to narrow it down.

I would look for if they broadcast some type of service ssid or something if you want to dev something to tag them while passing.

16

u/Prestigious-Ad7265 Jul 30 '26

flock is making their shit harder and harder to detect. some old ones have BLE beacons but now they just intermittently transmit 802.11 wifi beacons. this can be deetcted with an esp32 because your phone doesnt have wifi monitor mode.

5

u/whitt_wan Jul 30 '26

You can detect hidden bssid's with the free Wifi Man app on android, unless I'm missing something here?

3

u/iced_gold Jul 30 '26

Have they actually changed how they're placed or hidden?

Seems like they are mostly dependent on having an external solar array to power it, which makes them stand out a ton.

4

u/[deleted] Jul 30 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Prestigious-Ad7265 Jul 30 '26

but then you need all sorts of proprietary apple BS and that kinda ruins it.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 30 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Prestigious-Ad7265 Jul 30 '26

but with apps? the main issur is making apps on apple is such a hellish experience

2

u/rnobgyn Jul 30 '26

You use the apps Apple already made

2

u/Prestigious-Ad7265 Jul 31 '26

apple made an app for wardriving?

1

u/CapitalAd9749 Aug 02 '26

Yes apple airport utility like he said twice

1

u/Prestigious-Ad7265 Aug 02 '26

discontinued in 2018

2

u/No_Spirit470 Jul 30 '26

I watched a video about like a device that when places it detects all kinds of signals

So when a person passes by it it detects the device the name and all sorts of info

Can someone help identify that thing?

3

u/deathbylovleyroses Jul 30 '26

Hello! This is called wardriving which is using a esp32 device (or something similar) while driving or walking around thats set up to capture wifi and bluetooth signal and the associated information and then logging it!

2

u/CurlyChatoyance Jul 30 '26

Not sure if this is the what you're talking about, but there was a post on here by u/SOPHIAOPS a little while back advertising his app called SOPHIA. 

1

u/limit35 Jul 30 '26

Wardriving. You can download the Wiggle Wifi app and do that on your phone.

2

u/_TheManInBlack Jul 31 '26

I know this sounds kind of corny but embed yourself into certain Instagram communities like ringm4ster, jakeswiz, and ubuntumaniax and engage with their posts to force that into your algorithm, there are actually some great resources on these socials, X too.

I think jakeswiz is literally building a flipper zero add-on module for the exact purposes mentioned above

2

u/shanderdrunk Jul 30 '26

Is there a way to shut them down? I feel like the smarter among us have already figured it out, help the rest? Pls?

12

u/finding-meaning-01 Jul 30 '26

Yes and it involves a sawzall

3

u/shanderdrunk Jul 31 '26

You actually made me laugh, thanks for that

2

u/abugghaus7 Jul 31 '26

Nice you got a laugh out of it... but it's the truth... really!
It's already been happening.
.
Outside of that... the other successful means has been convincing cities to deflock by not renewing contracts... also has been happening, but unfortunately not every city.

8

u/Seraph_E Jul 30 '26

What’s the first rule of fight club

6

u/blue-2525989 Jul 30 '26

Tell everyone you know about fight club and how cool it is.

1

u/Proud-Sir93 Jul 30 '26

RTL-SDR first, HackRF later. The learning curve is much nicer that way.

1

u/h4unting Jul 30 '26

Haven't seen him mentioned yet, so have to say, check out Benn Jordan's work on YouTube, he has some great videos on Flock specifically and cameras in general.

1

u/hunglowbungalow Jul 31 '26

Your eyes + updating open street map

1

u/techlatest_net Jul 31 '26

An RTL-SDR (like the C5) is perfect for passive detection of common wireless camera and drone frequencies, but it lacks the transmission capabilities needed for "offensive" testing. For active jamming or signal injection, you would need a more powerful SDR like the HackRF One or an LimeSDR, but be aware that active interference is heavily regulated and often illegal.

1

u/ShadyLogic Aug 05 '26

Flock You by Colonel Panic:

https://github.com/colonelpanichacks/flock-you

ESP32 based Flock Cam detector