Mobile phones to locate callers
Nick Fielding and Nicholas Rufford
BRITAIN is entering a new era of Big Brother in which
subscribers to mobile phones will have their movements tracked to
within
five metres and telephone calls could be trawled by GCHQ, the
government
listening centre, for evidence of crime.
New technology and legal reforms mean police and the
security
services can spy on citizens more efficiently than ever before,
according to
civil rights campaigners.
Mobile phone makers have been told by the European
commission
that they must insert microchips that can be pinpointed by
satellites.
Ostensibly the devices will allow new "third-generation" phone users
to be
located when they make an emergency call. Campaigners have highlighted
the
sinister potential, claiming the devices will be used to trace
anyone
regarded as a suspect.
According to the commission, the decision has been
prompted by
concerns for public safety. But Caspar Bowden, an electronic
surveillance
expert, said legislation introduced earlier this year allowed GCHQ
legally
to intercept domestic telephone traffic for the first time. "We are
entering
a new era of Big Brother," he said.
His claim was disputed by the Home Office, which said
GCHQ's
remit remained restricted to overseas calls.
A co-ordination group at the commission will explore the
issues
further. The full directive will come into force on January 1, 2003.
But
with similar proposals being introduced in America next year,
officials are
pushing for an earlier implementation date.
Parthus Technologies, a Dublin-based firm, has designed a
chip
which takes information from a satellite and broadcasts it to
terrestrial
base stations. Kevin Fielding, chief operating officer, said:
"Emergency
calls will automatically result in the caller's location being
transmitted."
source:The Sunday Times
(reproduced under Fair Use)
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