SoylentNews

kadal [soylentnews.org] writes:

Bruce Schneier has an article on increasing use of Stingray [schneier.com], which

is the code name for an IMSI-catcher(IMSI = International Mobile Subscriber Identity [wikipedia.org]), which is basically a fake cell phone tower sold by Harris Corporation to various law enforcement agencies. (It's actually just one of a series of devices with fish names -- Amberjack is another -- but it's the name used in the media.) What is basically does is trick nearby cell phones into connecting to it. Once that happens, the IMSI-catcher can collect identification and location information of the phones and, in some cases, eavesdrop on phone conversations, text messages, and web browsing.

Interestingly,

There are dozens [wired.com] of [venturebeat.com] these [washingtonpost.com] devices [gizmodo.com] scattered around Washington, DC, and the rest of the country run by who-knows-what government or organization. Criminal uses are next.

He has been remarkably consistent about his main point:

We have one infrastructure. We can't choose a world where the US gets to spy and the Chinese don't. We get to choose a world where everyone can spy, or a world where no one can spy. We can be secure from everyone, or vulnerable to anyone.

---

Original Submission