Thanks to intern Errol Pierre-Louis for this report!

Jen DeLeo already told us about the CATTrax phone, which lets you keep tabs on your kids. Here is a more malevolent way to use a phone: Gift someone you want to spy on with a GSM SpyPhone. It looks like a normal cell phone but doubles as a sophisticated audio bug you can use to eavesdrop, without detection. A number of phone models with the feature can be found on a Dutch site, SpyPhones.com.

The SpyPhone operates just like any other cell phone. But when you call it with a special preprogrammed number, it becomes a sneaky listening device for picking up nearby conversations. When the number is called, the phone doesn't ring, beep, or do anything else; it appears to be in standby mode while it silently activates and lets the caller listen to anything in the vicinity. If any key is pressed, though, the connection automatically breaks and the phone reverts to a normal mode, making it that much harder for the phone's recipient to find out what a sketchball they've befriended.

Keyloggers and adware programs at least pretend they're used for legit purposes, like protecting your kid or providing "strategic direct response advertising."  No such hypocrisy at this site. The list of usages for the phone include: to keep track of your partner, to see if you can trust your business partner, and to reveal secrets. This evil gadget doesn't come cheap: They run from about $1,005 to $1,832 for the high-end Nokia 7260 (shown is the 7250).