Sprint Revealed GPS Data to the Government *8 MILLION* Times in the Past Year

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http://paranoia.dubfire.net/2009/12/8-million-reasons-for-real-surveillance.html

Executive Summary

Sprint Nextel provided law enforcement agencies with its customers' (GPS) location information over 8 million times between September 2008 and October 2009. This massive disclosure of sensitive customer information was made possible due to the roll-out by Sprint of a new, special web portal for law enforcement officers.

The evidence documenting this surveillance program comes in the form of an audio recording of Sprint's Manager of Electronic Surveillance, who described it during a panel discussion at a wiretapping and interception industry conference, held in Washington DC in October of 2009.

It is unclear if Federal law enforcement agencies' extensive collection of geolocation data should have been disclosed to Congress pursuant to a 1999 law that requires the publication of certain surveillance statistics -- since the Department of Justice simply ignores the law, and has not provided the legally mandated reports to Congress since 2004.


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Via Techdirt.

I've only quoted the summary of the essay. The rest is worth reading, and presents some pretty insane things (like service providers selling customer information to the government because it's very lucrative--with many having departments open 24 hours per day, for example).
 
I have trouble why anyone with nothing to hide would get upset over law enforcement helping protect them.. getting all indignant over wiretapping is reminiscent of those middle school rebels that used to always swear about how any cop they saw was a stupid dirty pig etc.. it seems anti-authority for no reason..

Google uses mobile phone GPS data millions (if not billions) of times per day, anyone who has any Google Mobile app is helping provide traffic data for Google Maps... does that bother you just as much, or is that one okay since Google isn't authority? Not trying to be a dick or anything.. just trying to pin-point what's so terrible about this
 
Of goose and gander ...

Is there an application to track the locations of police officers and government officials?

I would like to know exactly where anybody working for the government is located at any time and exactly where they were at any time in the past?

Government still on board?

Government? Government? Where are you?
 
[quote name='fatherofcaitlyn']Of goose and gander ...

Is there an application to track the locations of police officers and government officials?

I would like to know exactly where anybody working for the government is located at any time and exactly where they were at any time in the past?

Government still on board?

Government? Government? Where are you?[/QUOTE]

Considering they're paid via taxpayer dollars, I could support this. I mean, when I'm getting paid, my boss pretty much always knows where I'm at. ;)
 
[quote name='fatherofcaitlyn']Of goose and gander ...

Is there an application to track the locations of police officers and government officials?

I would like to know exactly where anybody working for the government is located at any time and exactly where they were at any time in the past?

Government still on board?

Government? Government? Where are you?[/QUOTE]

Not only that but it would be helpful to know if a cop is nearby, you know, to protect me if I need it. Oh wait, that means criminals would know too. Perhaps situations like this:

Ex-cop charged with stalking former lover

A QUEENSLAND policeman charged with stalking and assault has resigned.

Corrupt Michigan cops abuse police database to stalk, harass

Now, on to my non-sarcastic reply. There are 2 points I want to make. The first being what I was hinting at above, if you have a cop who has some reason to single you out (a woman being stalked by an ex-boyfriend perhaps) now he would instantly have the means to track you, at ANY time. There is no mention of court orders being issued to obtain this GPS data, huge problem there for me.

My second point is that yes this could be used to catch possible criminals and yes that's a good way to defend it, similar to the what people point out as a reason we should allow cameras to be placed everywhere. My problem though is that we should be focused on preventing crime not reacting to it.
 
[quote name='Koggit']I have trouble why anyone with nothing to hide would get upset over law enforcement helping protect them.. getting all indignant over wiretapping is reminiscent of those middle school rebels that used to always swear about how any cop they saw was a stupid dirty pig etc.. it seems anti-authority for no reason..[/quote]

Amendment IV

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Nothing about that is ambiguous. Nothing.

Google uses mobile phone GPS data millions (if not billions) of times per day, anyone who has any Google Mobile app is helping provide traffic data for Google Maps... does that bother you just as much, or is that one okay since Google isn't authority? Not trying to be a dick or anything.. just trying to pin-point what's so terrible about this
Click to expand...
And in that instance you contractually agree to the exchange of information via the ToS. Google != government.
 
[quote name='Koggit']I have trouble why anyone with nothing to hide would get upset over law enforcement helping protect them.. getting all indignant over wiretapping is reminiscent of those middle school rebels that used to always swear about how any cop they saw was a stupid dirty pig etc.. it seems anti-authority for no reason..

Google uses mobile phone GPS data millions (if not billions) of times per day, anyone who has any Google Mobile app is helping provide traffic data for Google Maps... does that bother you just as much, or is that one okay since Google isn't authority? Not trying to be a dick or anything.. just trying to pin-point what's so terrible about this[/QUOTE]

Yeah because I'm sure no jealous cops took advatage of this program to spy on their exes. I'm sure no curious cops took advantage of this to eavesdrop on celebrity conversations. It's not like politicians have ever been caught using law enforcement resources to scope out the competition.

Like your hero Dick Cheney says "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear”. Effectively meaning that you shouldn't do anything that you wouldn't be willing to have broadcasted in the middle of Times Square. Demanding a reasonable expectation of privacy in the modern era is doubleplus ungood.
 
[quote name='speedracer']Amendment IV

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Nothing about that is ambiguous. Nothing.[/QUOTE]

Get the fuck out of here with that old ass piece of paper!

...

In reality, everybody could be surgically implanted with a GPS device that records its own location. Flash memory is small and cheap. The device in contact with GPS would merely write a string of coordinates and timestamp every so many minutes or seconds. If anonymity was desired, the devices wouldn't have any serial number to trace back to an owner. The satellites would send info to some random requester.

Now, onto preserving the Fourth Amendment ...
For access, the device could have some sort of I/O port like an USB. You could make it wireless, but wireless isn't secure. So, it would need a physical connection.
When accused of a crime, the cop can offer to download your whereabouts in order to "clear" you. Of course, all data would need to be one way: Writer to Flash Memory and Flash Memory to Police Scanner. Of course, a person could also plead the Fifth to avoid the scanner.

Of course, they can't implement this worldwide without IPv6 and several laws making people like me who would disable said devices into wanted criminals.
 
[quote name='UncleBob']Considering they're paid via taxpayer dollars, I could support this. I mean, when I'm getting paid, my boss pretty much always knows where I'm at. ;)[/QUOTE]

In all honesty, I would support making the exact location of Representatives and Senators at all times public knowledge.

Mr. Waxman, why are you always going to that brothel?

Mr. Cantor, why are you always within 2 meters of the same known cocaine dealer every Wednesday around 7PM?

Men who desire power over other men should be watched constantly.
 
Koggit you're an idiot. Do you know the enormous potential for Blackmail this has? What if you're Gay, into BDSM, Bisexual, Transgender, into Porn, etc.? Unless you're a fucking monk or a straight man or woman that ONLY has sex in your bedroom or your domicile in the missionary position you're rife for being blackmailed as people are such hypocrites. They want squeaky clean, white bread people who are the TRUE anomolies.
 
[quote name='Koggit']I have trouble why anyone with nothing to hide would get upset over law enforcement helping protect them..[/QUOTE]

I do have things to hide. For instance, EVERYTHING I say on the phone. If I wanted my call to be known by everybody, I'd post it on Youtube. What I say on MY phone is MY business. The way government works is that man gives up some of his liberties in exchange for security. I didn't give up ALL of my liberties. And this is probably more dangerous for me than secure. Now I've got some weirdo cop listening to every phone call I make, knowing where I'm going to be and when I'm going to be there.

If you're so on board with this, why don't you send them a hard copy of all your calls, texts and emails? It'll be easier for them, as then, they won't have to obtain it illegally. :roll:
 
I'm not shocked at all. I now vow to lie on the phone every single time to throw the Government off my already devious trail.
 
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