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UMY-25
Covert miniature tape recorder - this page is a stub

UMY-25 is a covert minature body-wearable stereo open reel audio tape recorder, developed secretly in 1962 especially for the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). It was intended for use in surveillance and covert operations, and was also used by the intelligence services of several friendly nations, including the Dutch Internal Security Service (BVD, now: AIVD). It is likely that the UMY-25 was also used by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In 1966, when the CIA moved to Nagra recorders, the UMY-25 was converted into a commercial product: the M60.

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In 1966, CIA switched to the – also secretly developed – Nagra SN, which was made by the Swiss company Nagra/Kudelski and had much better specifications. As a result, the UMY-25 was no longer produced exclusively for the CIA and could be marketed freely by the manufacturer. This resulted in the M-60, which was nearly identical to the UMY-25, but showed the brand name EDI. The M-60 was short-lived and was succeeded by the binaural (stereo) M-75B that same year.


Documentation
  1. Operating Instructions UMY-25 Binaural Pocket Recorder
    CIA, undated.
References
  1. Roland Schellin, Personal correspondence
    March 2024.

  2. AIVD, Draagbare opnameapparatuur
    Retrieved 30 March 2024.
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Tuesday 12 March 2024. Last changed: Saturday, 30 March 2024 - 08:43 CET.
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