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Guess who's tracking you by cell phone?
ZDNet News ^ | 2/27/02 | Ben Charny

Posted on 03/01/2002 5:16:24 PM PST by truthandlife

The nation's cell phone service providers will soon know exactly where every one of their customers is, at all times, and privacy rights groups are asking what they plan to do with the information.

All U.S. carriers are under Federal Communications Commission orders to make it possible for police to locate cell phones calling 911, something police can't do now. Carriers plan to use the same systems to sell services like helping stranded motorists even if they don't know their location, or finding the closest restaurant.

Because people with cell phone generally always carry their phone with them, the FCC regulations give the thriving market for personal information something its never had a chance to get: the exact locations at all times of more than 140 million people.

"There are some things you don't mind other people knowing, but your location isn't one of them," said Gary Laden, a privacy program director for BBBOnline, a Better Business Bureau subsidiary.

Private details that become public knowledge every time people visit Web pages and leave information, every address that the U.S. government sells, or every ATM transaction that dutifully records the time are just some of the ways that technology has been tracking individuals. But knowing someone's location at all times adds a significant new twist to tracking information about people.

Sprint is already offering an Enhanced 911 (E911) system in Rhode Island and sells a pair of phones that work on the system. In a year, Verizon Wireless says nearly half of all new handsets activated will have this capability. The FCC expects 95 percent of the cell phones sold in the United States by 2005 will meet the FCC guidelines.

Neither AT&T Wireless nor Verizon Wireless offer any E911 or related services yet. But both say they do not sell the information they already collect from their subscribers, such as a home address used to send a monthly bill. And they don't plan to do anything different with the location information once they do offer those services.

"We already know where you live, but we haven't made that available to anyone," Verizon Wireless representative Nancy Stark said.

Travis Larson, a spokesman for the wireless trade group Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association said the worry isn't so much the carriers, but the independent companies that provide the commercial services.

"Not all companies in this space will be CTIA members," he said. "Then you have a group of businesses unregulated."

So far, backers of two consumer privacy initiatives say they've begun talks with carriers about what they plan to do with the information they collect.

On Wednesday, AT&T Wireless spokesman Ritch Blasi said the company is the first U.S. carrier to have its privacy policies reviewed and approved by Truste, a coalition that approves online privacy policies, whose sponsors include AT&T Wireless, AOL Time Warner, Intel, Microsoft and others.

Truste and AT&T Wireless are also working together to create a uniform policy for what carriers should do with the information they collect. Blasi and a spokesman for Truste said they want carriers to tell subscribers that their location can be tracked, and what plans, if any, they have for the information.

Also Wednesday, supporters of a recently approved privacy standard known as P3P (Platform for Privacy Preferences) say they've also begun a dialogue with wireless carriers.

Some versions of Microsoft's Internet Explorer use P3P to automate the process of deciding if a Web site's privacy policies are good enough for a user. People can pre-load their Web browsers with preferences, such as whether they want a Web site to accept a browser's cookies filled with personal information. If the browser is directed toward a Web page, it'll seek out the privacy policies and determine if they match the preferred ones. If not, the Web page doesn't load.

Josh Freed, a spokesman for the Internet Education Foundation, said backers of P3P want to offer the same type of function to cell phone customers. "This way, every time there is an exchange of data, the phone alerts you if there is a conflict," he said.

The effort is very new, Freed and others warn, and is preceding even the existing technology.

"We have a blank page in front of us now," said J. Walter Hyer, AT&T Wireless chief privacy officer.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: privacylist
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To: truthandlife
This is the reason that i do not now and will never own a cell phone. It is my understanding also that cable gives an open line into your house that can be abused, therefore, i have never had cable, much to my childrens chagrin.
41 posted on 03/01/2002 6:51:01 PM PST by All Hail Bill Gates
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To: Myrddin
Yes, but I understand that 3 cell tower RDF fix is not very precise, but in a real time search can be used as a starting point for precise airborne or multiple vehicle RDF.

And once they have snagged the code info from the cell phone, they can "switch it on" as a transmitter at any time covertly, so simply turning it off means nothing.

42 posted on 03/01/2002 6:53:05 PM PST by Travis McGee
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To: Travis McGee
How can your cell phone be switched on and still appear to be switched off?
I mean if it's "on" you will be able to see that it's "on"
Right?
43 posted on 03/01/2002 6:56:33 PM PST by watcher1
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To: Travis McGee
Well Travis, unless you are doing something wrong...like Pablo Escobar, why should it matter if someone could determine your location. It has been possible to triangularate on any RF signal since before WWII, it comes in quite handy when trying to locate distressed motorists, hikers...military personnel, etc.

Unless you are a terrorist or a criminal there should be no need to track you...so why worry about it?

44 posted on 03/01/2002 6:57:10 PM PST by No more Demofascists
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To: SoCal_Republican
We're not being paranoid, we are merely interested in the "state of the science" in regards the government's technical ability to track those it wants to, whether it's Pablo Escobar or Mohammed Atta2.

Once the 911 GPS protocal is in place, do you REALLY think that it will not be used to track fugitives, suspects, "enemies of the state" etc? Really? I have a nice bridge to sell you.

45 posted on 03/01/2002 6:57:36 PM PST by Travis McGee
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To: SoCal_Republican,myrddin,hollywood,squantos,harpseal
It is simple enough to make it so that the phone only gives it's exact location during a 911 call. I expect that is what will happen once this becomes a big fuss. The 'Government' will not have access to your location all the time. At the very worst the wireless carriers will have the information. Not Big Brother.

Yeah, and Pablo Escobar is still running loose in Colombia. You REALLY think the govt will not have their own backdoors put in place? Come on, really? Let me tell you about my bridge, new paint, recent engineering evals, it's a real beauty, amd half off for you tonight only!

46 posted on 03/01/2002 7:01:24 PM PST by Travis McGee
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To: babylonian
What's the hubub all about? "They" have known where we all are for years! Heat. Water. Telephone. Drivers license. Income Tax. Phone book. Heck, all you'd need to do to find anybody in the world is ask Publisher's Clearing House where they are!

I wish this was true. There are some people out there that don't wish to be found and prefer to remain anonymous usually because they are wanted. Its almost an art form and some are very good at it.

47 posted on 03/01/2002 7:04:49 PM PST by Joe Hadenuf
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To: Travis McGee
This can help you out if your falsely accused of a crime (and the reverse is true also) if your phone can wasn't near the crime and you made calls to others at times that prevent you from being at the crime scene it can help you.

Of course they can also say they are worried your a terrorist or drug dealer and get a "rolling wiretap" of your location to track you from your phone.

48 posted on 03/01/2002 7:05:00 PM PST by TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig
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To: Free the USA
Hmmm...you could combine this technology with unmanned aircraft outfitted with hellfire missles and facial recognition software.

You'd have a veritable roving death squad..

49 posted on 03/01/2002 7:05:00 PM PST by Skip Ripley
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To: Travis McGee
You gotta see this.
50 posted on 03/01/2002 7:05:23 PM PST by grasshopper
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To: watcher1
In my experience with every cell phone I've seen, if it's off, it's off. No data is available to the carrier or BIG Brother. If you are really worried, pull the battery.
51 posted on 03/01/2002 7:05:32 PM PST by SoCal_Republican
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To: No more Demofascists
It's a theoretical discussion. You can say the same things about a "benign" mandated transmitter chip implant. "If you are not a terrorist or crook, why would you mind Central Control having the ability to track you within 5 meters any time they choose? And think of all the lost hikers who will be saved!"

As long as you do nothing to merit that close inspection, like say, begin to dig up evidence of massive vote fraud after President Daschle is elected say.... and every time you step off the curb you are nailed for jay walking, etc.

52 posted on 03/01/2002 7:06:50 PM PST by Travis McGee
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To: Free the USA
Don't answer #13 - it's tonight's DU disruptor.
53 posted on 03/01/2002 7:07:41 PM PST by anniegetyourgun
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To: big ern
Quite true, the records can be used in an exculpatory way as well. It can cut both ways.
54 posted on 03/01/2002 7:08:23 PM PST by Travis McGee
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To: AlGone2001
He was asking a specific and reasonable question. Your response is vapid and mean.
55 posted on 03/01/2002 7:09:02 PM PST by Demidog
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To: SoCal_Republican
every cell phone I've seen, if it's off, it's off.

That's what I figured.
No I'm not worried. I've got 2 cell phones (With the battries in).
I just wanted to know what the state of the art in tracking was

56 posted on 03/01/2002 7:10:12 PM PST by watcher1
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To: Travis McGee
"Yes, but I understand that 3 cell tower RDF fix is not very precise, but in a real time search can be used as a starting point for precise airborne or multiple vehicle RDF."

They use phase difference math to determine location, it's much more accurate than triangulation. With only one tower, it's not as accurate as they'd like, because it's depending on "RDF-like" technique (i.e., which antenna(s) on the tower get your signal the strongest) but it's still fairly accurate.

As to the remote-turn-on deal, I don't buy it as possible except for some very low drain digital phones, and "rigged" phones (i.e., it's possible to blow a palie terr's head up with a cell phone, but not with any cell phone :) )

The problem is, to turn a phone on remotely, the phone's receiver must be receiving. Even the "economy" settings (which turn the receiver on and off every few seconds) will cause the battery to run down at a known rate. When the phone is off, the battery lasts as long as it would if it were detached from the phone. This is pretty convincing proof that the phone is really and truly "off" when it's turned off.

Some of the newer digital phones have such low drain that a battery will have a standby time measured in terms of several days. It's possible that even if it was in a "clandestine on" mode when putatively "off", people wouldn't notice, because their routine would be to recharge long before the battery had run flat.

57 posted on 03/01/2002 7:10:35 PM PST by Don Joe
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To: truthandlife
In some areas this has been true for awhile anyway. When you don't need to use the cell phone, turn the power off.
58 posted on 03/01/2002 7:11:20 PM PST by sheik yerbouty
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To: anniegetyourgun
It's a good question. I wholeheartedly believe that this article should raise some concerns. The poster he is questioning however says that cell phones were tracked and used a nebulous "they" to describe the trackers. This article points out that in order to be tracked you will have to use one of the new phones designed to send location information. I would be interested too in knowing what cell phone company was tracking its users.
59 posted on 03/01/2002 7:11:32 PM PST by Demidog
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To: No more Demofascists
Hi Sweetheart..
60 posted on 03/01/2002 7:13:17 PM PST by WhyisaTexasgirlinPA
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