New Court Ruling Makes it Easier for Police to Track Your Cell Phone

Hanni Fakhoury

EFF

A Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling this week will make it easier for police to track your movements through your cell phone after the court decided police aren't required to obtain a search warrant to track you.

The case involved a 2010 law enforcement request to obtain 60 days of cell phone location records from two cell phone companies. The government wanted to identify which cell phone towers a particular phone number had connected to in order to place a suspect at the scene of a crime, and submitted a request under the Stored Communication Act ("SCA") for access. The magistrate judge denied the request, understanding that records revealing your daily movements could show where you worship, what your medical conditions might be, and what political issues might interest you, not to mention who your friends and family are. It therefore rightfully ordered the government to apply for a search warrant supported by probable cause before accessing this sensitive data.

Federal court: no warrant is required for law enforcement to track your location via cell phone records

(Image credit: Nicola since 1972/Flickr)

Madison Ruppert

A federal appeals court has ruled that law enforcement agencies are not required to obtain a warrant in order to track your location through your cell phone records.

This is hardly a surprising decision given that other judges have said that cell phone users have “no legitimate expectation of privacy,” some in the house have said no warrant should be required to acquire geolocation data, and the Obama administration claims location data is not protected by the Fourth Amendment.

The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans supported this trend earlier the week by overturning a federal judge in Houston, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The court ruled that cell phone records are the property of your carrier and thus are not protected by the Fourth Amendment’s probable cause standard.

NJ Bill Would Force Drivers To Give Cell Phones to Police

CBS

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Apple’s “Censoring” Patent Just a Sign of Things to Come

Julie Samuels
EFF

Apple has been much maligned in the press recently for filing a patent application covering a camera system with infrared technology that could, among other things, allow the recording functionality to be shut off by a third party. For example, in its application, Apple shows how the technology could be used to "prevent illegal image capturing" at a rock concert.

Google to show off mobile wallet for Android phones

Using a mobile phone is likely to ease queues

BBC News

Google is set to introduce a mobile payments platform that will turn its Android smartphones into a digital wallet.

At an event in New York on Thursday, the tech giant is expected to show off the technology, called near field communication or NFC.

The technology allows devices to "talk" to one another wirelessly.

Consumers wave their phones in front of a reader at a checkout to pay for a purchase or to receive special offers.

Google unveils phone that can be swiped as a credit card

Daily Mail

Google unveiled an app today that allows users to pay for goods with their mobile phones.

In future customers will be able to pay just by waving their phone's screens across a terminal reader thanks to Google Wallet, the smartphone application.

Unveiled in New York the app, which will launch this summer, signals the start of what Google calls the age of mobile and local, know simply as 'MoLo'.

The project is designed in conjunction with MasterCard and Citibank, and so far the likes of Macy's, American Eagle Outfitters, Subway, Walgreens and a host of other brands have signed up to the scheme.

Using Near Field Communication technology, the app will allow users to purchase goods. The payments will then be sent to the merchants who may choose to provide shopping incentives for the consumer.

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US lawmakers query smartphone 'apps' privacy

Alan Davidson, director of US public policy of the
Americas at Google Inc., testifies on Capitol Hill in 2010
© AFP/Getty Images/File Win McNamee

Editor's Note:  Are lawmakers feigning ignorance and concern about privacy violations to dupe people into believing that  new legislation is necessary to "protect" us?


AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Apple, Facebook, and Google on Thursday fielded questions from US lawmakers concerned that smartphones and popular mobile "apps" were putting people's privacy at risk.

"I think online privacy is a basic American right and the companies that produce apps have to be regulated," Senator Jay Rockefeller said at the opening of a hearing on consumer privacy and protection in the mobile marketplace.

"With this new innovation comes gigantic risk."

Members of the Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance Subcommittee questioned a panel that included Facebook chief technology officer Bret Taylor; Apple vice president of worldwide government affairs Catherine Novelli, and Google's US director of public policy Alan Davidson.

Apple, Google to attend hearing on mobile privacy

Editor's Note:  More political theater to delude the sheeple.  Do you really think these people are concerned about your privacy?  Don't believe what they say, believe what they actually do!  

A customer looks at an iPhone 4 at the Apple
store in Palo Alto, California
© AFP/Getty Images/File David Paul Morris

AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US lawmakers have invited Apple, Facebook and Google to attend a hearing on mobile phones and privacy on Thursday -- the second Capitol Hill appearance in a week for executives from Apple and Google.

Senator Jay Rockefeller said the hearing of the Senate Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance Subcommittee would focus on "industry practices with respect to online mobile data collection and usage."

"The hearing will also explore the possible role of the federal government in protecting consumers in the mobile marketplace and promoting their privacy," the Democrat from West Virginia said.

Google Blackmailing Users to Obtain Their Mobile Phone Numbers?

Activist Post

Internet users, who may have one or multiple accounts through Google, whether they’re for Gmail, YouTube, Blogger, AdSense, or other services, now seem to be forced to give Google their mobile phone number in order to maintain their services.

Surely, the message below has now been seen by nearly all users:

The message prompts users to give their mobile phone number to receive an automated call with a security code to verify their account in order to reinstate it.  In the past when account discrepancies arose, Google simply asked for verification through a “recovery” email account.  There are no explanations from Google as to why this method has been insufficient enough to now appear to require the mobile phone number of all users.

For many users, Google provides services vital to operating a business.  It may be a blog that generates income, a popular Youtube channel, or simply emails that must be answered by professionals.  In today’s world, when these services are blocked for even 24 hours, many stand to lose tremendous potential.

It is for this reason that if Google users have no choice but to submit to further personal data forfeiture, it can only be viewed as forced submission, or drop Google services.  Because Google has grown so large, if this new requirement becomes mandatory, it will surely affect a large portion of Internet users.

With the recent spate of stories concerning smart phone tracking and lawsuits against Google for harvesting data illegally, forgive us if we view this recent information request suspiciously.  This not only means Google will obtain your phone number, but potentially the ability to track your movements via that data.

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Man Arrested For Not Giving Cops His Cell Phone (Video)

ABC


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US lawmakers ask Apple about tracking feature

Senator Al Franken
© AFP/File Saul Loeb

AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US lawmakers are seeking an explanation from Apple following a claim that iPhone and iPads are constantly logging the location of the devices and storing the information in a hidden file.

Senator Al Franken, a Democrat from Minnesota, sent a letter to Apple chief executive Steve Jobs on Wednesday and Representative Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, sent Jobs a letter on Thursday.

The letters came after a pair of British security researchers, Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden, said the position-logging feature is contained in iOS 4, the operating system for the iPhone and iPad released in June of last year.

Biometric Security Now Reality: Coming Soon to Android

Alicia Gomez
Android Headlines

Biometric security has long been desired on our phones to provide the most secure way to protect your phone from unwanted intrusion. BluePlanet Apps, maker of RoboPrint and dTor, has been developing this app for quite some and is nearly ready for a Beta release.

At the Apps World Conference, BluePlanet Apps CEO Jason Braverman presented BioLock to an audience including Samsung, who he says are interested in having it on their phones. BioLock is a truly futuristic concept brought to life by scanning either your iris, recognizing your face, or using a password to unlock your phone.

The app uses Army-grade algorithms for face modeling when doing facial recognition and even has blink detection and pupil dilation to prevent someone from merely using a photo of you.

Without you physically there to scan your face or iris, no one can have access to your phone. Perhaps you do not need to lock down your phone completely but just prohibit access to specific apps, for example, your text messages. Whenever entering the app, Biolock is activated before opening.

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Secretary of Transportation LaHood: We’re looking into technology to disable cell phones in vehicles

The Daily Caller

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said using a cell phone while driving is so dangerous that devices may soon be installed in cars to forcibly stop drivers — and potentially anyone else in the vehicle — from using them.

“There’s a lot of technology out there now that can disable phones and we’re looking at that,” said LaHood on MSNBC. LaHood said the cellphone scramblers were one way, and also stressed the importance of “personal responsibility.”

The hosts of Morning Joe pushed the secretary about the possibility of requiring scrambling technology installed in vehicles.

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Who Is Watching You? Nine Industries That Know Your Every Move

Douglas McIntyre

Daily Finance 

Don't kid yourself. Real privacy no longer exists in this country.

We've long had government organizations collecting data that paints a pretty clear picture of what we do with our time. The Internal Revenue Service knows everything about what you earn and any major transactions you make. It can access every bit of information it needs to determine how much money you should be sending on April 15.

The most important gatherer of personal information in the country is the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It keeps a database of over 90 million fingerprints, which can be accessed by other law enforcement agencies. It also has an extensive database of DNA, the most specific marker of personal identity. The bureau's ability to collect information expanded following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. It now tracks a large portion of mail, cell phone traffic and Internet activity of people it deems suspicious.

Thanks to advances in technology, however, there are also now numerous private enterprises that track and record your every move. Although they don't usually give out this information, there are often worrisome leaks and security breaches where they inadvertently release sensitive information about their customers. Taken together, these industries have data on where you are, who you are communicating with, how you are earning your money, how you are spending that money, as well as the hobbies and interests you are pursuing.

We examined a large number of organizations to find the most intrusive firms and industries. Here they are, ranked by the number of people they track: 

1) Credit Rating Agencies
With each firm having files on over 200 million people, the three credit bureaus -- Equifax (EFX), Experian (EXPGY), and TransUnion -- know not only your credit history, but also have the data to project your credit future. The companies collect a history of all credit use by an individual, including payment of bills, mortgages, and credit cards. The agencies also track the frequency with which a person applies for credit. That information is used to determine a person's credit risk through acredit score. These scores are produced using secret algorithms, ensuring that the bureaus know much more about you than you know about them. 

2) Cell Phone Service Providers

As cell phone popularity has increased and technology has evolved, cell phone companies have come to possess a wealth of information about their customers. Covering over 90% of the American population, cell phone providers can tell who you call, when you call, how often you call certain people and what you say in your text messages. With GPS, they also now know where you are whenever you have your phone. As smartphones become the equivalent of miniature computers, cellular companies can also track personal behavior, such as use of multimedia and wireless e-commerce transactions. 

3) Social Media Companies
In its ascent to Internet superpower, social enterprise Facebook has amassed an enormous amount of user information. Who your friends are, what you like, and what photos you are in are all information that the company has access to. That, however, is not the full extent of it. Facebook also tracks which profiles you view, who you communicate with most often, companies and causes you support, your personal calendar, and a great deal of personal information about your friends and family. Perhaps most surprising, Facebook can access much of the information you may have deleted, including photos and status updates, from their servers. 

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10 Ways We Are Being Tracked, Traced, and Databased

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