Spy Phones

Article Tools

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

But snapping photos may be the least of society's problems. When Darryl Littlejohn was arrested for murder last year, police used his cell phone records to catch him. Terry Allen of In These Times calls attention to a New York Daily News investigative report showing that Littlejohn didn't even need to make a phone call to alert the authorities to where he was. Instead, police used a series of 'pings' -- computer reachability tests -- that were stored by T-Mobile and later retrieved by the police.

The case is troubling for many civil rights activists and security experts. If technology enables authorities to find out the location of murderers, it's not a stretch to think it could be turned on innocent citizens. The information could be given to government agencies for investigations, or even to businesses for profit. Websites such as Best People Search already offer background checks and reverse cell phone searches for anyone willing to pay the fee. As internet security expert Bruce Schneier tells Allen: 'Verizon and the other companies have access to that information and the odds are zero that they wouldn't sell it if it is legal and profitable. This is capitalism after all.'

Go there >> The 21st-Century Peep Show

Go there too >>Reach Out and Track Someone

Related Links:

• How I Stalked My Girlfriend
• Camera Phones Fire A Warning Shot
• Moblogging: Web Revolution or Invasion of Privacy?

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print