Chris Hayes: gov't has the capability of turning any cell phone on remotely and using it as bug

[dkf]

@chrislhayes: Here' something to chew on: the gov't has the capability of basically turning any cell phone on remotely and using it as a bug.

[NYC_SKP]

1. I'll bet they don't.

But I'm also afraid that it won't be long before they will have that capability.

[dkf]

4. They already used it...2006!

Cell phone users, beware. The FBI can listen to everything you say, even when the cell phone is turned off. A recent court ruling in a case against the Genovese crime family revealed that the FBI has the ability from a remote location to activate a cell phone and turn its microphone into a listening device that transmits to an FBI listening post, a method known as a "roving bug

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2006/12/can_you_hear_me/

[Little Star]

42. +1

[In_The_Wind]

48. Some of us already knew that.

[hughee99]

49. See, it's old news, so that means it must be nothing to be concerned about.

That seems to be the newest defense.

[Chisox08]

10. Yeah they do

That is why when you go in for a job with the federal government they either tell you to leave your phone or they take it and give it back after the interview is over.

[Fumesucker]

2. You say that like it's a bad thing

Think of the children!

[bluedigger]

3. So pull the battery.

Problem solved.

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

8. lol

Ah, wouldn't that defeat the purpose of having one.

[bluedigger]

17. Not so much.

If you are that worried about the gov turning your phone on remotely, then it's just one more step before using it.

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

21. ah

so no one ever calls you, eh?

[bluedigger]

24. Just my mom and people looking for money.

I could live without a phone okay.

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

26. can you guess

i am not surprised.

[meaculpa2011]

47. Not at all.

The voice mail still operates, the text and email functions store messages. I get to answer the calls and messages I choose to answer. I use my cell phone for business, but there aren't any calls so important they can't wait... unless it's my daughter calling to tell me she's out of gas. Then I'm in real trouble.

Bottom line: The battery is disconnected most of the time.

Call me paranoid, but I was very close to being identified as a member of organized crime. I had written a report for a leasing company that was sub-contracted by an out-of-state company that was owned by a corrupt politician with ties to the mob. My phone was not tapped, but calls from out of state were. When we were on conference, the FBI was listening in on me. The "reporter" got the transcript and guess what? My name ends in a vowel, so...

I was awakened at 3AM and told that my name would be in the morning paper. Luckily the fact checkers were working the late shift that night.

Unless you're one of those folks that's texting or yapping every ten seconds, leave the battery out. Better safe than sorry.

And I don't want to hear any "If you don't have anything to hide" bull.

[GReedDiamond]

9. I keep mine in a gun safe...

...since I have no guns to put in the safe.

Just kidding. Actually, I have a "smart" phone, but I always keep it at least 100 feet away from me at all times.

I prefer being the smartest thing in the room.

Plus, since either me or the govt is always turning it on, the battery is perpetually dead.

[bluedigger]

18. Only 100'?

You must live in a tiny hovel.

[Bluenorthwest]

20. If your rooms are all one hundred feet long, you either live in a mansion or a train car.

Just saying.

[bluedigger]

25. Plebe.

I thought this place had standards.

[GReedDiamond]

28. Please see post #27...nt

[Sancho]

45. I keep my phone at the other end of my 100' yacht!

No problem...

[GReedDiamond]

27. Actually, you are correct, bluedigger...

...my hovel is quite tiny for my taste in hovels, but it's the hovel I have, so I make the most of it.

Once I complete my research project on free energy for all, which I'm working on in my current hovel basement la-bore-a-tory, I'll get a bigger hovel, and move my "smart" phone out to like 200 feet away, at least.

[bluedigger]

30. Why do I suddenly suspect you have a supercollider in your la-bore-a-tory?

[GReedDiamond]

31. As long as my "smart" phone battery...

...is dead, NOBODY will know!

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAA etc etc.

[bluedigger]

33. Until the Black Hole swallows the Earth, you mean.

Then we'll ALL know.

[GReedDiamond]

34. I had not taken the Black Hole Scenario into consideration...

...I am now furiously recalculating.

"Smart" phone is still at least 100 feet away from me, w/a dead battery, though.

Thanks for your concern.

I really appreciate it.

I'm now going to alert on myself so I will be barred from posting anything else, hopefully, should I get the kind of DU Jury I'd like to serve on.

[dkf]

12. Can't pull the battery in an iPhone.

[bluedigger]

13. If you can afford an iPhone, you can afford to wrap it in tinfoil.

[IDemo]

5. I hear they do that with OnStar, so why not?

I think I'll be keeping my 20 year old truck and avoiding the smartphone craze for a while longer.

[loli phabay]

6. its already pretty normal to ping a cellphone to get a location on it, its also useful

In finding people who are 911 disconnects or people lost.

[FoxNewsSucks]

7. It's not just the microphone

The camera can also be accessed remotely. And, as mentioned above, any car with OnStar or any of those systems can be remotely monitored.

Turning your phone off doesn't work. You won't know it's been remotely activated. Physically removing the battery is the only way to completely shut your phone/tablet off.

Next time you're shopping for a phone, notice how more and more are being built with non-removable batteries . . . .

Coincidence?

[Corruption Inc]

35. A lot of people put a piece of tape over the camera on a computer

just for that reason.

[kenny blankenship]

11. Well this is AMERICA after all.

You didn't think you were going to get your telescreen issued to you by the government at their expense?

[historylovr]

14. +1. nt

[Coyotl]

15. More old news on the spying front - Not just the government either!!

[blkmusclmachine]

16. Big Brother is listening.

And watching.

And recording.

And ???

[zazen]

19. you can buy this capability online for less than $200

I was looking for software to monitor my middle schooler's phone usage and came across these systems wherein you can bug someone's phone and track their texts, searching history, location, etc., simply by calling them and staying on the phone for a certain amount of time. You don't have to jailbreak their phone--you can install the spyware remotely. Apparently it's a big thing with surveillance of partners.

I didn't look into it enough to see if it was plausible, but given the number of companies selling it, it seems likely that it works at least half the time.

I was stunned. We can bug each other like mad. That's as scary to me as the govt. Crap like this in the hands of batterers is terrifying.

[WeekendWarrior]

22. This is not new

I've known this since I got my first cell phone.

[FarCenter]

23. The Mobile Phone Shield Faraday Bag

http://www.faradaybag.com/the-mobile-phone-shield.html

[WovenGems]

29. Old School

I don't have a cell phone and don't want one. Leave a message and I'll get back to you. But, I want all women to carry one for safety reasons.

[randome]

32. Wow. There's some really indepth reporting via Tweet going on there!

I guess it's going to be a while before we get the entire article, seeing as how Hayes likes to run on and all.

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[Warren DeMontague]

36. That's why I store mine securely

Inside my ass.

Hell, they can even turn on the camera, if they want. Bon Appetit!

[BainsBane]

38. TMI, Warren.

[Warren DeMontague]

39. Just tryin' to help!

[madrchsod]

37. buy a samsung and use us cellular...

they`ll never figure out what anyone is saying because of the dropped calls..

[defacto7]

40. Old news actually...

It doesn't take a government to do it. You can download programs that do this if you know where to go. Anyone can have that capability. It's been going on for some time. I guess it's just a good timing to bring it up in this context. I wouldn't hesitate to say that hackers have been doing this long before the government ever caught on.

[Duppers]

41. Actually, "authorities" can also open-mike a landline

"The government likely also has the ability, with your phone company's help, to open the line on your landline phone and use its microphone as a bug, although we've yet to see any specific cases where such landline phone-based bugging has been used. Finally, the government may even have the capability, using remotely-installed government malware, to turn on the microphone or camera on your computer."

https://ssd.eff.org/wire/protect/eavesdropping

I was told about this years ago.




I'm wondering if all this spying is being done, why aren't more criminals caught and sooner?

And how are millions of "herbal" transactions happening w/o "authorities" knowing and prosecuting?

And where are the millions of human eyes it'd take to make decisions on these calls and messages?

[Baitball Blogger]

43. Anyone else see a spike in their "unknown caller" calls when they leave their

cell phones at home?

[hobbit709]

44. Let them try on mine. It's a dumbphone with removable battery.

[markiv]

46. they'd have to find somone not already talking on it to do that

so it's an acedemic issue