Myanmarâs Military Deploys Digital Arsenal of Repression in Crackdown The generals who staged a coup last month use surveillance drones, iPhone cracking devices and hacking software, some of it from Western countries that bar sales of such technology to Myanmar. A group of people leaving their neighborhood to join protests in Yangon in February.Credit...The New York Times Published March 1, 2021Updated March 12, 2021 During a half century of military rule, Myanmarâs totalitarian tools were crude but effective. Men in sarongs shadowed democracy activists, neighbors informed on each other and thugs brandished lead pipes. The generals, who staged a coup a month ago, are now back in charge with a far more sophisticated arsenal at their disposal: Israeli-made surveillance drones, European iPhone cracking devices and American software that can hack into computers and vacuum up their contents.