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Legal Spying Via the Cell Phone System
An anonymous reader writes "Two researchers say they have found a way to exploit weaknesses in the mobile telecom system to legally spy on people by figuring out the private cell phone number of anyone they want, tracking their whereabouts, and listening to their voice mail."
Just because it's possible doesn't make it legal.
From TFA: DePetrillo used open-source PBX software to spoof the outgoing caller ID and then automated phone calls to himself, triggering the system to force a name lookup. I thought spoofing caller ID was now illegal...
As far as I can tell, they assert that it is legal, therefore they think it is legal. Come on folks -- just because you aren't breaking or entering, or murdering someone does not make what you are doing "legal." There are all sorts of privacy laws that come into play here -- and I strongly suspect that I can find at least one prosecutor/judge/jury combo in this country that disagrees. I can't even begin to describe how many laws could be implicated by breaking into someone's voice mail!
Yes, IAAL, but IANYL.
With the ability to read the constitution - and reason above a third grade level - it is 100% clear that spying on a US citizen's communications without probable cause AND a warrant is not an authorized power for the US government or a US state. It is also doubtful that there exists, or can exist with constitution as currently constructed, a justification for a private citizen exercising such a power.
I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
If you just let a disconnected battery sit in a drawer it will drain itself too. It must be wireless electricity doodads in the battery and phone so the phone can send information on you to the secret police even if the battery is pulled. Quick, run before they find out you know too much!
Or maybe batteries just have a tendency to run dead when not in use due to self-discharge. Now get off my tech site.
Get a web developer
I once worked in a secured facility (DOE lab) where security briefings included being told that one of the reasons cellphones are not allowed is that they can be remotely tracked, accessed, and the microphones can be activated--even when the phone is off.
Whether its true or not, at a minimum, the people involved in setting security protocols for the DOE certainly think it is.
They may successfully argue that it is still legal. Their method is to call themselves with spoofed caller-id. The network fills in the name associated with the phone number and they build their database. Since they are only calling themselves and they know they are spoofing, they are not "intending to defraud or deceive" anyone.