fake, hacker phone towers (aka dirtboxes) put on planes (via Joao Carlos Medau/Flickr)
Hold the phone! American's may have to return to communicating via carrier pigeon and hand-delivered mail as the US Defense Dept. and NSA have begun a new, secret method of spying on everyone, ahem.. I mean criminals (wink wink).
There has already been knowledge of shady practices going on: taking the form of fake cellphone towers and 'stingrays'. This new device takes governmental cellphone hacking to a new level. In fact, it may even exist on a global level.
The oddity was found out from an NSA BOUNDLESSINFORMANT tool collecting information from France, Norway, Spain, and Afghanistan. Correspondents found a mysterious 'DRTBOX' code that held 33 million pieces of telephony metadata. Well, like Scully and Moulder said in The X Files, “the truth is out there.” And the truth has been pretty easy to find, although no concrete details on the extent of this surveillance can be found yet.
The DRTBOX is now nicknamed a 'dirtbox' and is a box shaped device created by Digital Recover Technology Inc. (DRT) a subsidiary of the Boeing Company. The dirtbox is able to mimic a cellphone tower and lure unsuspecting cellphones into thinking it is the strongest signal around – regardless of cellphone provider. Obviously, your phone is thinking that it is going to serve your well by connecting to the strongest signal nearby, but the dirtbox is a fraud. The moment your phone attempts to connect to the signal, the dirtbox collects the unique ID information and location. Basically, they can track everyone and intercept all communications. What's crazier? These dirtboxes are only 2' x 2' meaning they are very covert and easily transportable. The new plan from the US Defense Dept. is to install these dirtboxes onto Cessna planes that travel throughout metropolitan areas to keep the highest form of surveillance on the public – I mean, criminals (again, wink wink).
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report on this, and there is no information as to when, where, and how often these spy Cessna planes will be fitted with dirtboxes. One thing is known, there is no encryption strong enough to thwart off the surveillance attempts of a dirtbox. The technology can pinpoint your identity and location down to a 3 meter accuracy.
Previously, Police and government have admitted to using 'stingrays' (a similar technology) to track and gain evidence on criminals. In a recent trial of David Daniel Rigmaiden, the FBI brought evidence gained by 'stingrays' into the trial. However, the Department of Justice wanted more information on the technology and extent of the usage of stingrays. This brought a whole new element into the case as no one wanted to release this information. Ultimately, the Department of Justice ruled it as an invasion of the Fourth Amendment, but wouldn't disclose why.
Regardless, that hasn't stopped the US Department of Defense from launching an even bigger impediment to the Fourth Amendment through the use of airborne dirtboxes.
C
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