Traffic and phone jams for LA
by Nick Farrell
The Inquirer
LA police are working out a way to jam all mobile phones and wireless devices in the event of a terror attack.
The plan is being drawn up by Sheriff Lee Baca and other law enforcement authorities. Baca was a bit spooked that terrorists used cell phones to detonate explosives in the case of the March 11 railway bombings in Spain. During a junket, er, fact finding mission to Pakistan, he was told how phone jamming technology had helped thwart the attempted assassination of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf in December.
Baca told the LA Daily News that public safety was more important that public convenience and he was looking at methods to use phone jamming in the event of an attack.
He has an up hill battle. Currently jamming is against FTC regulations and the mobile phone industry objects to the use of the jammers, arguing that the airwaves are public property and jammers violate the rights of their customers. However some security experts warned that the use of jammers would bugger up any attempts by people to contact emergency services in a terror attack. Many police, fire department, hazmat units and doctors rely on cell-phone communications.
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PHAEDRUS ADDS: Just think -- if you did this, you would be called a terrorist. Also -- what about people trapped in the aftermath of a catastrophic attack who could be located via cellphone? What about people such as those aboard the hijacked planes on 9/11 who were able to call and convey information to the FAA about the attacks?
Sigh.
by Nick Farrell
The Inquirer
LA police are working out a way to jam all mobile phones and wireless devices in the event of a terror attack.
The plan is being drawn up by Sheriff Lee Baca and other law enforcement authorities. Baca was a bit spooked that terrorists used cell phones to detonate explosives in the case of the March 11 railway bombings in Spain. During a junket, er, fact finding mission to Pakistan, he was told how phone jamming technology had helped thwart the attempted assassination of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf in December.
Baca told the LA Daily News that public safety was more important that public convenience and he was looking at methods to use phone jamming in the event of an attack.
He has an up hill battle. Currently jamming is against FTC regulations and the mobile phone industry objects to the use of the jammers, arguing that the airwaves are public property and jammers violate the rights of their customers. However some security experts warned that the use of jammers would bugger up any attempts by people to contact emergency services in a terror attack. Many police, fire department, hazmat units and doctors rely on cell-phone communications.
********
PHAEDRUS ADDS: Just think -- if you did this, you would be called a terrorist. Also -- what about people trapped in the aftermath of a catastrophic attack who could be located via cellphone? What about people such as those aboard the hijacked planes on 9/11 who were able to call and convey information to the FAA about the attacks?
Sigh.
