|
 |
Cell Phone Tips |
|
|
|
|
Experience a Cell Phone Tracker
Many people don't realize it, but their cell phones are a tracking device that can be used to monitor your location. This can be an advantage for you. Your telephone could help with directions, pinpoint help in an emergency or find a restaurant when traveling. The unexpected aspect of cell phone tracking is that a phone does not have to be in use either on a call or the internet to be tracked remotely. However, the phone must be turned on.
The signal from your cell phone is routed through cell towers, with the technology determining which tower has the best or clearest signal. As you move around, the towers monitor your cell phones signal and switch from tower to tower. By comparing signal strengths from multiple towers, the technology can approximate your location.
Some newer phones have built-in GPS receivers which could be used in a similar fashion, but can pinpoint your location.
Companies are beginning to sell tracking services utilizing their cell phone signal. One company, AccuTracking was incorporated in 2005 and their service works for Nextel and Boost customers equipped with certain phones. This service assists with GPS vehicle tracking, personal tracking and child communication. Some of the services available include web-based tracking, mapping & reporting; you can track from your PC, or any phone with a web browser. You can also sign up for speed alert and low battery alert via email or SMS. The premium service also includes tracking reports, daily mileage, stops, and time and speed statistics. Rates are surprisingly low with basic 1 year of prepaid service costing only $60.
One of the interesting and concerning developments utilizing cell phone tracking technology involves the Depart of Justice. In 1994 when lobbying for the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, then-FBI Director Louis Freeh assured the U.S. Senate that location surveillance would never take place unless there was evidence of wrongdoing. Utilizing the technology to locate a felon would be appropriate because there would be enough evidence of probable cause that the police could present to a judge. And intelligence gathered from cell phone technology helped U.S. forces find and kill the Al-Qaeda terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, The Justice Department apparently believes that your location should be available without a warrant if you voluntarily transmit your GPS- location to your cellular provider, if for instance you are obtaining driving directions or looking for a restaurant or gas station. Unfortunately, the courts seem to allowing the police to trample on our civil rights.
Cell phone tracking can be a big asset to people, especially in emergencies, when lost or searching for a location. However, in the wrong hands, it is a dangerous weapon allowing our whereabouts to be tracked without our consent or knowledge.
These devices can also pose as a huge violation to human rights when used by the government and others without a legitimate means for doing so. Currently this controversy is being argued in many court systems. |
|
|
