U.S. Justice Department Accused of Using Fake Cell Towers on Planes to Gather Data From Phones

[MacRumors]

The United States Justice Department has been using fake communications towers installed in airplanes to acquire cellular phone data for tracking down criminals, reports The Wall Street Journal. The program has reportedly been in place since 2007 and uses Cessna airplanes that operate out of "at least five" metropolitan-area airports.

Aircraft in the program out outfitted with "dirtbox" devices produced by Boeing that are designed to mimic cellular towers, fooling cellphones into reporting "unique registration information" to track down "individuals under investigation." According to the WSJ, these devices let investigators gather "identifying information and general location" data from thousands of cellular phones in one flight, and Apple's encryption policies don't prevent the collection of data.

Cellphones are programmed to connect automatically to the strongest cell tower signal. The device being used by the U.S. Marshals Service identifies itself as having the closest, strongest signal, even though it doesn't, and forces all the phones that can detect its signal to send in their unique registration information. Even having encryption on one's phone, such as Apple Co. 's iPhone 6 now includes, doesn't prevent this process.

The technology is aimed at locating cellphones linked to individuals under investigation by the government, including fugitives and drug dealers, but it collects information on cellphones belonging to people who aren't criminal suspects, these people said. They said the device determines which phones belong to suspects and "lets go" of the non-suspect phones.

The fake tower devices are able to interrupt calls on "certain phones," with authorities attempting to minimize harm by ensuring they doesn't interrupt emergency calls, and the technology can pinpoint a suspect's cellphone location down to three meters.

The program is run by the U.S. Marshals Service, and some individuals involved have raised concerns about the legality of the operation and "if there are effective procedures" in place to safeguard the handling of data acquired, as it is said to capture data from thousands of non-criminal individuals as well.

It is not known how often the flights take place as the WSJ's sources did not divulge that information, but they reportedly "take place on a regular basis." Justice Department officials did not confirm or deny the existence of the program when questioned, stating that a discussion of the matter could "allow criminal suspects or foreign powers to determine U.S. surveillance capabilities," but a representative said that Justice Department agencies comply with federal law and seek court approval for their activities.

A Verizon spokesperson said that the company was not aware of such a program and did not participate, while spokespeople from AT&T and Sprint declined to comment.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: U.S. Justice Department Accused of Using Fake Cell Towers on Planes to Gather Data From Phones

 

[aaronvan]

They're actually "DRT boxes" and pronounced dirt-boxes. We used 'em all over AFPAK and Iraq.

http://www.drti.com

 

[Menopause]

This is ingenious!

 

[LucasLand]

our enemies don't have borders anymore. if it means capturing the next terrorist and their cell, go for it. I'm not doing anything wrong, so i'm not worried

 

[Populism]

Fewer dropped calls.

 

[R3k]

I'm not doing anything wrong, so i'm not worried

There is probably something you're doing wrong.

 

[Populism]

I'm not doing anything wrong, so i'm not worried

You're holding it wrong.

 

[Tech198]

new this was too good to be true..

Just one more way the governments can track you,, that's all it is...

And its supposed to be convenient..

I wouldn't bet this is true,,,, Governments are cable of anything, If is fake, then shame on them.

Look out NSA.. more juicy stuff is coming your way.

This is why i would never phone calls or take any on a plane.... I'm relaxing here,,, u cannot relax if u'r been pestered by your boss.

 

[jeblis]

our enemies don't have borders anymore. if it means capturing the next terrorist and their cell, go for it. I'm not doing anything wrong, so i'm not worried

If you're not doing anything wrong then I suppose you don't mind letting police into your home and letting them search your phone, email and hard drives. Shouldn't be a problem. You're not doing anything wrong, you don't have anything to hide.

 

[richardsonrs]

If you're not doing anything wrong then I suppose you don't mind letting police into your home and letting them search your phone, email and hard drives. Shouldn't be a problem. You're not doing anything wrong, you don't have anything to hide.

Since I am not doing anything wrong there is no need for that.. see how that works? Without probable cause they can't do that. With probable cause they can anyway whether you like it or not so...

 

[danielsutton]

If you're not doing anything wrong then I suppose you don't mind letting police into your home and letting them search your phone, email and hard drives. Shouldn't be a problem. You're not doing anything wrong, you don't have anything to hide.

Law enforcement agencies still need to get court warrants before they can conduct this kind of surveillance, so it is not like our constitutional rights are being violated.

 

[budselectjr]

Similar to the "Stingray" the Secret Service and others use. Watch the battery drain if you are near the President if he ever comes to you city.

 

[WissMAN]

I bet if I tried this I would be arrested. What makes them different?

 

[x-evil-x]

Batman?

 

[Tech198]

If you're not doing anything wrong then I suppose you don't mind letting police into your home and letting them search your phone, email and hard drives. Shouldn't be a problem. You're not doing anything wrong, you don't have anything to hide.

My sister says the same thing... which is not the point...

It's privacy.... the word wouldn't exist and not even mean anyting, if you allow everyone access to your stuff.

Which is why users use VPN's. Yes they are hiding something, but its because of privacy is needed, not just a word everyone makes up because it sounds good.

The same applies to everyone.... you shouldn't choose who has access to what based on when higher ups.'

to me, privacy is privacy.. unlike most people who get scared just because the police wanna know something,,, to me,,, the moment u hand it over, its no longer "private' , its known by someone else.

I do give info up, but only when i decide to, regardless who it it....

 

[JeffyTheQuik]

I don't trust a government that doesn't trust me with a phone.

 

[richardsonrs]

I bet if I tried this I would be arrested. What makes them different?

Is this a real question??

 

[Lazy]

Fewer dropped calls.

You've got that backwards. More dropped calls when this interrupts one. Or you can't make a call at first when your phone connects to this instead of a real cell phone tower.

 

[japanime]

The fake tower devices are able to interrupt calls on "certain phones," with authorities attempting to minimize harm by ensuring they doesn't interrupt emergency calls, and the technology can pinpoint a suspect's cellphone location down to three meters.

I could see this being useful in a sting operation targeting drug dealers, for instance. But what about a mass shooting, where eyewitnesses might have a chance to call police from their cell phones to provide information about the whereabouts of the shooter? Will those "emergency calls" truly be uninterrupted? If not, then the approach could be doing more harm than good.

 

[richardsonrs]

I could see this being useful in a sting operation targeting drug dealers, for instance. But what about a mass shooting, where eyewitnesses might have a chance to call police from their cell phones to provide information about the whereabouts of the shooter? Will those "emergency calls" truly be uninterrupted? If not, then the approach could be doing more harm than good.

If I had to guess this is used in a targeted manner. They have info someone is near here, fly over and see. Doubtful that this is on all the time.

 

[jeblis]

Law enforcement agencies still need to get court warrants before they can conduct this kind of surveillance, so it is not like our constitutional rights are being violated.

The problem is that this surveillance is overly broad. It tracks all cell phones in an area. There needs to be protections that this can only be used on a specific phone with a specific court order. Any other data collected must be immediately destroyed.

 

[Born Again]

This seems excessive

I often wonder if this sort of surveillance was inevitable post 9/11 or not.

Yet people will be okay with this because fear drives this.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

As long as they have a court issued search warrant for a specific cell phone, then any information "inadvertantly" collected would therefore be inadmissable in court as it would have been illegally obtained. If it keeps criminals off the streets, I don't see a problem with it.

 

[nagromme]

I'm not doing anything wrong, so i'm not worried

Do governments ever target people who are doing nothing wrong? Do government employees ever target their enemies, ex-lovers or business competitors?

Obviously you must trust all current leaders and employees of government to do the right thing and never target the innocent. And obviously you do NOT trust all past leaders and employees, since they've proven the opposite (from locking up American citizens and killing their pets because they looked Japanese, to framing political targets for things they didn't do, etc.).

Leaving the question: do you trust all future leaders and employees?

 

[ThunderSkunk]

As if I needed more reason to become a luddite.