New reports: U.S. Government listening to your private calls.

[Crazyeighties]

After seeing this I can not say I'm surprised. There are new reports that the U.S. Government is using devices called "dirt boxes" that mimik cell phone towers these are being installed in small aircraft like a Cessna and being operated out of at least 6 city's nation wide. To justify this the govenment says "it's a minnaly invasive way to search for terror suspects" the report also claims that the goverent can know where you are with in a 10 foot radius. So accurate they can tell what floor and what room your in. What are your thoughts on the issue?

http://www.hlntv.com/video/2014/11/14/planes-cell-phone-spy-wall-street-journal

[Officer620]

 

Cheers!

[Dingdongs]

I think it's pretty damn cool and intelligent advancement on the part of the agencies responsible... hopefully it works as intended.

Edited November 15, 2014 by Irviding

[Nick1020]

Guess we the Patriot Act to blame.

[sivispacem]

Welcome to several days ago.

 

The report I saw on the subject was considerably more detailed- it's the US Marshals operating the system, primarily for detecting fugitives and the like, it doesn't use any kind of proprietary technology, isn't particular advanced and isn't really that invasive as far as interception goes- in fact, it isn't really even "interception", and certainly doesn't constitute listening to calls. I mean, phones basically broadcast identity and location willingly when they connect to cell towers, and the technical requirements of interpreting these broadcasts and using them to pinpoint phones' locations are pretty low. And pretty widely understood, being used from everyone from service providers to emergency services. In fact you can build a tool for geolocating phones to a high degree of accuracy with parts from your local Radio Shack.

 

Where on earth did you get the idea that this constituted "listening to private calls"?

[lil weasel]

If true, this would be the most sophisticated, intrusive spying program that we the public know about yet, when it comes to your digital data, but they have been doing this for at least twenty years. And do not forget the Hoover FBI spying on locals for years before that.
You cannot find "Terrorists" (anyone who speaks against the government and owns a gun) if you do not look for them. "People who look for trouble, find it."
The next logical step would be for the government to search everywhere and everyone without the specific "need" for a warrant. Oh, wait, ICE roadblocks...
All considered it is in the good for all the people. This might even stop normal crime.

Panopticism?

Edited November 15, 2014 by lil weasel

[sivispacem]

If true, this would be the most sophisticated, intrusive spying program that we the public know about yet

No, no it really wouldn't.

[lil weasel]

 

If true, this would be the most sophisticated, intrusive spying program that we the public know about yet

No, no it really wouldn't.

 

Which one is then?

 

By the way you failed to note that that line is a quote from the original story.

[The Harwood Bitcher]

Thank f*cking god i don't live in US.

[lil weasel]

Thank god i don't live in US.

YES! We are happy about that too! Edited November 15, 2014 by lil weasel

[The Harwood Bitcher]

 

Thank f*cking god i don't live in US.

YES! We are happy about that too! Oh, you ! Edited November 15, 2014 by The Harwood Bitcher

[theadmiral]

 

If true, this would be the most sophisticated, intrusive spying program that we the public know about yet

No, no it really wouldn't.

 

Can you tell us more without violating your top secret security clearance?

[MarshalMoo]

Are they also selling that information to companies that advertise on Facebook? I keep ads for deer and I can only assume it's because of certain private conversations when two people called each other, "Dear."

[161isaiah161]

I'm screwed

 

 

I guess it's time to move to japan forever

[dice]

NSA is supposidly doing this since forever, recording about 80% of the US. The problem with stuff like this is the amount of data is just too huge to properly store or process everything.

Edited November 15, 2014 by dice

[Crazyeighties]

I guess we could see this one of two ways either "what the f*ck" or I have nothing to hide so nothing to fear so why should I care about someone listening to the links of pizza I order or what time I'll be home"

[lil weasel]

The only problem with this gathering is that People do it Not Governments.

People treat their prying in different ways. Anybody hear of a guy called Hoover and later Himmler?

 

Whether or not the technology is or isn't here and now it will be. How long ago was a 50mb storage system possible, and nobody thought of even considering 3TB as practical. What ever happened to "Bubble Memory"?

 

When dealing with secret societies and governments, always Over estimate them.

Edited November 15, 2014 by lil weasel

[Stephan90]

Thank f*cking god i don't live in US.

 

NSA is spying all over the world. They are damn criminals.

[Dottie]

To be honest, Im not surprised. My phone conversations are boring anyway and not worth recording

[make total destroy]

mfw the FBI has been tapping phones for decades

mfw phone companies work close enough with law enforcement that fake cell phone towers are not necessary

mfw tower data can already be used to pinpoint your general location

mfw this is 'news'

[sivispacem]

 

 

 

If true, this would be the most sophisticated, intrusive spying program that we the public know about yet

No, no it really wouldn't.

 

Can you tell us more without violating your top secret security clearance?Mobile phone interception is very easy, and practised by almost all law enforcement agencies. The crypto algorithm used for 2G and below is very easy to brute-force so devices like the Stingray boxes that most US local and federal law enforcement have access to basically block all 4G and 3G signal, forcing mobiles within a certain radius down to 2G so they can decrypt.

 

Except the "dirtboxes" in this article aren't actually being used to decrypt or the intercept voice communications, but are instead being used to simulate base stations so that handsets read IMEI and location data back to them, allowing phones to be tracked without actually intercepting any communication data.

 

Not that you actually care given that you're basically just a troll.

[Doc Rikowski]

Just out of curiosity, in the US can you buy and operate a mobile phone anonymously?

In here you still can and that pretty much grants you a certain degree of privacy.

[Smith John]

sivis, she or he or whatever it is was just being sarcastic with you. You just wasted two paragraphs on somebody who is one of the most pathetic of trolls around this place. The usual routine always starts with..."Can you tell us more about...".

 

Just a heads up, bud.

Edited November 15, 2014 by Lucchese

[Gay Tony]

Technology will at some point in the future, lead to a world without privacy. Like no privacy… at all. I'm talking every conversation and movement will be detectable- whether through phone or whisper in person on a park bench.

 

Everything and everyone from every corner of earth will be recorded and visible too at some point.

 

Ever hear of drones?

Edited November 15, 2014 by mr toasterbutt

[universetwisters]

Joke's on them, the only people I call are the Takeaway across town.


@Doc - Yeah, they've got those little cheap disposable cell phones for sale at places like 7-Eleven. I used to have one. It was "pay as you go" and it was a pain in the ass.

Edited November 15, 2014 by universetwisters

[lil weasel]

Just out of curiosity, in the US can you buy and operate a mobile phone anonymously?

In here you still can and that pretty much grants you a certain degree of privacy.

TRACFONE.

http://zip.tracfone.com/?utm_source=IMM&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=DR&utm_keyword={keyword}

[Dingdongs]

Yeah but if you commit a crime or are involved with illegal activity in any way with one of those tracphones the government will find who you are by looking at where the phone was purchased. Not too difficult .

[Gay Tony]

Yeah but if you commit a crime or are involved with illegal activity in any way with one of those tracphones the government will find who you are by looking at where the phone was purchased. Not too difficult .

Cash.

 

But it really won't matter anyways when the drone business/Google Earth or whatever other technology it'll be called really advances and starts a-booming and everybody starts spying on/recording eachothers movements and everything they say. Mark my words.

 

This electronic tapping is insgnificantly small to the extent of what I think is coming a hundred or so years down the road.

Edited November 15, 2014 by mr toasterbutt

[Doc Rikowski]

@Doc - Yeah, they've got those little cheap disposable cell phones for sale at places like 7-Eleven. I used to have one. It was "pay as you go" and it was a pain in the ass.

 

Why a pain in the ass? How does it work? I use a phone that I can "charge" with as much money as I want for calls and messages. It's no different from putting gas in your car once in a while.

[universetwisters]

 

@Doc - Yeah, they've got those little cheap disposable cell phones for sale at places like 7-Eleven. I used to have one. It was "pay as you go" and it was a pain in the ass.

 

Why a pain in the ass? How does it work? I use a phone that I can "charge" with as much money as I want for calls and messages. It's no different from putting gas in your car once in a while.

 

 

The thing was that every call you made or text you shot out, you had to pay like a dollar or something. Then, once all your money is up, you have to run down to the store and get another cash card for it to work. I think it was more expensive to get/send text messages as opposed to calling, so whenever I got a text message from someone, I would actually call them and say "Don't text me anymore because you're taking money from me. What do you need".

 

Comparing that way to the current way I have, unlimited talk/text for a flat fee each month, I definitely prefer the latter.