News So who is listening?

Discussion in 'Free Speech Alley' started by shane0911, Sep 4, 2014.

  1. shane0911

    shane0911 Helping lost idiots find their village

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2005
    Messages:
    37,558
    Likes Received:
    23,813

    http://money.msn.com/investing/post--mysterious-fake-cellphone-towers-found-across-us

    Bunch of towers that intercept our phone calls and text? Who would do such a thing, more importantly, if "no one" knows who they belong to then why are they not being cut down like a christmas tree?
     
    LSUTiga, gyver and GregLSU like this.
  2. uscvball

    uscvball Founding Member

    Joined:
    Dec 16, 2006
    Messages:
    10,673
    Likes Received:
    7,156
    I read that this AM. Strange thing....I have occasion to communicate with someone who works just outside Ft Gordon and this exact thing happens all the time. And it sure as hell ain't the NSA because Ft Gordon is host to Sweet Tea. They listen all over the world and have no need of a phony cell tower.
     
  3. red55

    red55 curmudgeon Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2002
    Messages:
    45,195
    Likes Received:
    8,733
    Well, they probably aren't really "towers". They are a device called a StingRay cellphone surveillance device or another one called Hailstorm. They have been around for a while and work by connecting with a nearby cell tower and then tricks mobile phones that are also connected with the tower into giving up their identification data. And who is using the devices? A few scammers and government agencies but mostly it is our good friends in local law enforcement.

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...earing-about-arent-necessarily-towers-at-all/
     
  4. LaSalleAve

    LaSalleAve when in doubt, mumble

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2008
    Messages:
    44,037
    Likes Received:
    18,027
    I'm not sure but I sure do love Obama and the government. They are the awesomest.
     
  5. GregLSU

    GregLSU LSUFANS.com

    Joined:
    Dec 2, 2007
    Messages:
    8,293
    Likes Received:
    3,798
    Seems like entrapment to me. So what happens when they uncover someone else breaking the law as they are spying on someone else? We have zero rights anymore.
     
  6. uscvball

    uscvball Founding Member

    Joined:
    Dec 16, 2006
    Messages:
    10,673
    Likes Received:
    7,156
    To me the structure doesn't matter. The functionality does. And while your link suggests that law enforcement are likely offenders, it doesn't say that others can't be.
     
  7. red55

    red55 curmudgeon Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2002
    Messages:
    45,195
    Likes Received:
    8,733
    It said specifically that scammers and government agencies (read FBI, homeland security) use them. I think this kind of thing is what people expect con-men and identity thieves to use. But police using them without warrants is over the line.
     
    GregLSU likes this.
  8. Bengal B

    Bengal B Founding Member

    Joined:
    Sep 5, 2002
    Messages:
    47,986
    Likes Received:
    22,992
    Cell towers are very expensive. About $150K to $250K to build and you would have to buy or lease the land to put it on. Plus the costs of maintenance. That's a bit out of reach for most scammers. Its gotta be something more sinister than a scam
     
  9. red55

    red55 curmudgeon Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2002
    Messages:
    45,195
    Likes Received:
    8,733
    Read the article. There are not any "fake towers". They don't have to build a tower. It's a device like a laptop computer with a radio. They just set it up near any real cell tower and then they can spoof the other phones logged in to that tower.
     

Share This Page