Is That Cell Phone Tower Watching Me?

An anonymous reader writes "Cell phone networks, FM radio towers and television antennaes could all turn into pieces of cheap and dirty tracking networks that use passive radar, according to this fairly comprehensive article. These new systems are only a couple years away from roll out for uses such as small airport radar coverage but wild possibilities abound including using cell phone networks to track speeders, terrorists or even individuals walking on city streets."

Comments

Cellphones to track speeders?

[TheMidget]

So now you can get two tickets for the same offense:

• The first for speeding
• The second for leaving your cellphone on while driving (and no, hands-free sets don't count: even if they keep your hands free, they don't keep your brain free)

Careful Note

[oGMo]

Is That Cell Phone Tower Watching Me?

Cell phone networks, FM radio towers and television antennaes could all turn into pieces of cheap and dirty tracking networks that use passive radar [...] for uses such as small airport radar coverage but wild possibilities abound including using cell phone networks to track speeders, terrorists or even individuals walking on city streets.

Note: these will not have any effect if you are wearing your tinfoil hat. In fact, I can sell you one right now for just $19.95 plus S&H. If you order now, I'll throw in a free pair of tinfoil shoe covers so they can't see where you've been, either.

Prices shown do not include sales tax. Void where prohibited.

:-P

Re:Careful Note

[cyril3]

Ha Ha you fool. Its a passive radar system that uses reflections of cell radio waves to track you. I suspect a tin foil hat will be mandated headware under the Patriot Act in a few years.

This is a great idea!

[darkov]

It's easy to track terrorists by the telltale radar signature of their turbans.

Re:Terrorists my ass

[cliffy2000]

Oh no! You let them know our code!

CIA Mind Control Lasers!

[fuzzybunny]

When I was at Berkeley, a few friends of mine worked off-campus at the Center for Extreme Ultraviolet Astrophysics. This was connected to the campus network via a microwave relay mounted on the roofs of two buildings.

The story I was told by one of the sysadmins was that one day, the thing just stopped working, with no technical explanation. After doing all manner of tracing and debugging, they finally went to go check the campus-side transceiver, and found it turned 180 degrees in the other direction, with a note saying something to the extent of I know what you're doing, this is a CIA mind control device, if you try to keep reading my thoughts and fix this, I will find and kill you.

They fixed it and put a nice laminated piece of paper on it, explaining that, no, it's not part of the Orbital Mind Control Lasers, but rather an innocuous network component used for space research, and please don't mess it up, you could fall off the roof and hurt yourself

It never happened again; I guess they could have just ordered a few aluminum foil deflector beanies for the general public.