INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
A senator has confirmed that the use of cell site simulators for conducting real-time surveillance on cell phones may interfere with 911
calls.
In a letter to the attorney general, Sen
Ron Wyden said that devices, widely known as&stingrays,& can jam cell phones from sending or receiving phone calls and text messages, which
may limit a phone from contacting the emergency services
Wyden said officials at Harris, which develops the surveillance device, told his office that a feature designed to preventinterference with
911 calls was neither tested nor confirmed to work.
Wyden said that not only do stingrays disrupt the communications of a targeted cell
phone, other people devices nearby might also &experience a temporary disruption of service.
Stingrays are controversial bits of tech —
largely in part because almost nobody outside law enforcement has seen one or knows exactly how they work
These devices are held as a closely guarded secret by police and federal agencies who are bound by non-disclosure agreements — so much so
that prosecutors have dropped court cases that might reveal confidential information about the devices.
What we do know is that policeacross
the US use these suitcase-sized devicesto mimic cell towers, which trick nearby cell phones into connecting to the device
Police can then identify someone real-time location and log all the phones within its range.
Some advanced devices are believed to be able
to intercept calls and text messages.
Busting through the secrecy has become a challenge for hobbyists and hackers alike
As far back as 2015, researchers were building low-cost alternatives to cell site simulators as proof of concepts
Nowadays,according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, cell site simulators are &easy to acquire or build, with homemade devices costing
less than $1,000 in parts.
That going to become a problem for regulators and the authorities — if it not already a nationals security
Although cell site simulators are only available for purchase to law enforcement, Homeland Security recently warned that foreign spies have
also obtained the technology — and are using the devices in the nation capital.
The EFF said that the &only way to stop the public safety
and public privacy threats that cell-site simulators pose is to increase the security of our mobile communications infrastructure at every
layer.
All companies involved in mobile communications from the network layer [cell carriers] to the hardware layer (chip and networking
device makers], to the software layer [tech giants] need to work together to ensure that our cellular infrastructure is safe, secure, and
private from attacks by spies, criminals, and rogue law enforcement,& said the rights group.
