The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been running a startup that would put Silicon Valley to shame. ANOM is a three-year-old joint venture read more with Australia’s Federal Police, 9,000 law-enforcement officers from 17 countries and a drug-trafficking smartphone-developer turned informant. It tapped into the booming market for secure apps and devices. Just this Monday Apple (AAPL.O)touted its “legacy of privacy leadership” by showcasing new data-protection features. The FBI’s crooked punters paid $1,700 for an encrypted device boasting a bespoke messaging app and a six-month subscription. It’s the type of hardware-meets-software business model that low-margin handset makers like China’s Xiaomi aspire to . Word-of-mouth marketing would have kept costs low. ANOM’s active users tripled within months, helped by competitors routinely being shut down. With tonnes of drugs seized, hundreds of people arrested and a treasure trove of criminal underworld data, the FBI probably hit its returns targets – with some ESG kudos to boot. Only trouble is, it’s a hard model to replicate. (By Robyn Mak) On Twitter http://twitter.com/breakingviews Capital Calls - More concise insights on global finance: Warren Buffett is exhibit A to hike taxes on rich read more About You fits its $5 bln IPO valuation read more Big Tobacco is ramping up its transition read more SoftBank’s Flipkart 2.0 is a big endorsement read more Medline’s money machine read more