March 4, 2004
How Tiny Swiss Cellphone Chips Helped Track Global Terror Web
By DON VAN NATTA Jr. and DESMOND BUTLER
LONDON, March 2 — The terrorism investigation code-named Mont Blanc began almost by accident in April 2002, when authorities intercepted a cellphone call that lasted less than a minute and involved not a single word of conversation.
Investigators, suspicious that the call was a signal between terrorists, followed the trail first to one terror suspect, then to others, and eventually to terror cells on three continents.
What tied them together was a computer chip smaller than a fingernail. But before the investigation wound down in recent weeks, its global net caught dozens of suspected Qaeda members and disrupted at least three planned attacks in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, according to counterterrorism and intelligence officials in Europe and the United States.
The investigation helped narrow the search for one of the most wanted men in the world, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who is accused of being the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, according to three intelligence officials based in Europe. American authorities arrested Mr. Mohammed in Pakistan last March.
For two years, investigators now say, they were able to track the conversations and movements of several Qaeda leaders and dozens of operatives after determining that the suspects favored a particular brand of cellphone chip. The chips carry prepaid minutes and allow phone use around the world.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/04/international/europe/04PHON.html?ei=5062&en=95d360567b8043ea&ex=1078981200&partner=GOOGLE&pagewanted=print&position=Thanks JustPiper.
This reminded me of the exact same type of phone phone I had while in Kuwait last spring. The only thing required to obtain this communications capability is a minimal amount cash. There is no verification of identity or intended use. Following my arrival in Kuwait and exchanging US Dollars for Kuwaiti Dinar I purchased enough on-air cell time to last for a full year. Upon my departure I simply gave my phone to the person taking my spot in the command and told him how he could purchase additional time on the SIM.
Such a system is the terrorist's dream come true because these kinds of cell phones are ideal for clandestine communications and as bomb detonation devices.