Observations and inanities by a second-shift assistant supervisor in the Puppy-Grinding division of the Evil Atheist Conspiracy® (our motto: "Sure it's cruel, but think of the jobs!"), your host, Brent Rasmussen.
"Is that a tracking device in your pocket, or are you just happy to let the Feds know where you are?"
I'm always surprised when people *don't* know the limitations and liabilities of the technology they take for granted. Take for example this Washington Post story about cellphone tracking:
Cellphone Tracking Powers on Request
Secret Warrants Granted Without Probable CauseFederal officials are routinely asking courts to order cellphone companies to furnish real-time tracking data so they can pinpoint the whereabouts of drug traffickers, fugitives and other criminal suspects, according to judges and industry lawyers.
In some cases, judges have granted the requests without requiring the government to demonstrate that there is probable cause to believe that a crime is taking place or that the inquiry will yield evidence of a crime. Privacy advocates fear such a practice may expose average Americans to a new level of government scrutiny of their daily lives.
Gee, ya think?
See, here's the thing: cell phones have to maintain steady contact with cell towers in their area, in order for you to have reliable service. Also, the Enhanced 911 system needs to be able to figure out where you are if you call, so the technology is built-in. And many phones simply have a GPS system. Your mobile phone service provider can basically track your movements at all times, so long as you have your phone with you. There have even been cases where people have been disciplined/dismissed from jobs based on cell movement monitoring by their employer. And Google "cell phone monitoring" (or any variant) and not only will you get a lot of hits, but off to the right are a bunch of sponsored links from companies offering to help you monitor the movement of someone based on their cell phone. Charming, eh? Do you seriously think that the government wouldn't take advantage of this?
Oh, and one more item to keep in mind: remember, your phone doesn't even have to be 'on' for this to work. So long as the battery is plugged in, it is 'live'. And if they want to, your cell phone company (at the behest of the authorities?) can turn on the mic to listen in on your conversations even when you aren't using the phone.
Yeah, you're carrying a tracking device in your pocket. And a 'bug'. Welcome to the future.
Jim Downey
(Slightly different version of this cross-posted to my blog.)
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Memory
Back in the 60s when we had the draft, you were supposed to notify your draft board of your movements, such as when my parents moved from New Jersey to Connecticut, despite which I would still have been included in NJ's quota if the occasion arose. A friend of mine in college was reputed to have sent daily letters to his draft board, telling them what he had done that day. What would be today's equivalent? Buying hundreds of phones and leaving them on in dozens of Greyhound buses?
Frank Moorman, skeptic
Glad I never got a cell phone
I've never been a big caller, and when I realized the only reason I'd get a cell phone is to play cell phone exclusive games I realized I had no business getting a cell phone.
Not all Cell phones have GPS of course, older models that were released before the technology became small enough to be practical (useful for tracking pigeons, both the avian and human sort) don't. Actually a lot of people who know about the technology seem to want it in their phones, that way they can be tracked if they have an emergency (instead of just being at the intersection if Hysterics and I Don't Know), and of course there was that thing about tracking those hikers using the one guy's cell phone. All this means there's a lot of publicity about how a personal GPS unit can be used to help people in trouble, and less about how it can be used to track people's movements. And probably, if said tracking ability became public it would probably be "Oh noez! teh hackers can stalk you by using your cell phone", of course our noble government would never have reason to use the same capability. Meanwhile, cell phone jammers are illegal in the US because of some bullshit about how they might endanger people by not letting them call for help (as if the vast majority of cell phone conversations aren't the sort of stuff you get in everyday life).
"If there is evil in this world, it lurks within the hearts of men" ~Edward D. Morrison, Tales of Phantasia
Got a note . . .
Got a note from a friend about this post. Their comments in italic, my response after.
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I did not know that stuff about my cell phone.
Most people don't. And it's not like the phone companies like to talk about it. But it is basic to the technology.
I will need to begin storing it with the battery out. Lovely...
Ah, but see, that's where you should be even more paranoid: they design the memory so that it requires the battery to be plugged in to retain your phone numbers and programming. They don't have to be designed this way - plenty of different types of flash technology will retain memory without battery power. But this way, it is much too much of a hassle to unplug your battery . . . thereby insuring that people will always be able to be tracked (and bugged). The trade-off of convenience for monitoring is fairly diabolical, for all that it is subtle.
Smile - you're on Candid Camera!
Jim Downey
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Like Science Fiction? Read my novel, Communion of Dreams, for free.
Well that's a relief
You know, i felt a little worried that some vast power - against which i had no defense - could not know where i was every second. But now that i'm in that cage of sorts, i feel much better.
More seriously, i'm glad that i never use any cellphone. I bought one a long time ago and since i didn't have that many friends to call all the time, i just gave it to my mom, who's a pro-refugee activist. I'll tell her the potential use of it by the cops...
Even if it's not a device that can track every one of your movement, it was pretty sick to begin with : suddenly, your boss could call you any time of the day, even on your way out. No more time alone. A little bit like those laptops they're giving away for your work...
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