Swiss to Name Mobile Phone Users 26
elmacho writes "In what is surely a knee-jerk reaction, the Swiss parliament has banned anonymous mobile phone usage following the revelations that Al Qaeda members were using the phones in other countries. Wasn't it established the other day that, considering they were caught, the anonymity provided by the phones is limited? What purpose will this serve, assuming that any terrorists who need a mobile phone will simply purchase one in another of the many countries that do provide anonymous mobiles?"
This is true in Germany for years (Score:2, Informative)
well, if you RTFA the other day... (Score:1, Insightful)
Some al-qiada kiddie told a cia agent (got a ton of $$$$ for it too) where that now captured terrorist lived and what his cell phone number was. we all know the result. this concept has been part of espionage since the days of Ceasar.
nsa didnt just scan phone after phone until they found something interesting, they were simply told where to look.
In Closely Related News... (Score:5, Insightful)
Mobile phone theft, ID spoofing, and black market handset sales in Switzerland skyrocket.
Because of course now that anonymous cell phone usage is illegal, only criminals can protect their IDs on cell phones.
I almost hate to make this point (Score:4, Insightful)
What purpose does outlawing child pornography serve? People could just go to a country that doesn't outlaw child pornography.
Point being -- people don't want it happening in their own backyard and they don't want it happening on their watch. I sympathize with this sentiment.
Re:I almost hate to make this point (Score:1)
I also agree with and understand the "not in my backyard" point, i just think that this action in itself is not going to have any affect on terrorism, which i why i felt it should be questionned.
Re:I almost hate to make this point (Score:2)
I'm with elmacho, this analogy is off. Unlike cellular phones, child pornography doesn't have a legitimate, lawful use; whether purchased anonymously or otherwise.
The terrorist attack on the US was made possible thanks to box cutters. Should we outlaw the anonymous sale of box cutters - and require anyone purchasing box cutters to provide ID - just because terrorists used them? I bet
Actually, they are doing criminals a service... (Score:4, Interesting)
By illegalizing anonymous cell phones, the Swiss Gov't is simply saying to the criminals, "Hey, we know what a tough business it is keeping up with all the cloak and dagger stuff you guys have to do to stay free. Rather than letting you fall on your sword, er, cell phone, and get caught, we'll keep up with the latest technology others are employing against you, and ban common thieving tools which are vulnerable, thus saving you valuable time which you can spend in more productive pursuits, such as larceny, or our favorite, GTA 3."
The upside for criminals is that they'll have to work a little harder to get an anonymous or fake identity phone, but echelon will now have to check a much larger pool of phones for suspicious activity, instead of focusing most of its efforts on anonymous phones.
The upside is that switzerland != the world, so anonymous phones are still available elsewhere.
-Adam
Re:Actually, they are doing criminals a service... (Score:2)
Flawed logic (Score:2)
I'm not saying that I agree with the Swiss, but I hate to see flawed logic go unadmonished. Obviously they hope to set a precedent that other nations would follow. You can't expect the entire world to change their laws together so you have to act in steps. It's like saying that there's no sense in using Linux in order break MS's monopoly when there are lots of other people still using MS. Yes I know it's a bad analogy but I can't think of anything else without more thought.
Re:Flawed logic (Score:1)
This might catch the dumbest of criminals (Score:1)
The point? (Score:2)
Not that I support them for doing this, but how many countries would have any laws at all if they really considered that people could always find another country to do whatever activity they are outlawing?
Not all of them (Score:4, Funny)
Um, 14 of the 15 hijackers weren't caught.
What purpose will this serve? (Score:1)
Maybe it will serve to stop terrorists from buying mobile phones in Switzerland.
Doesn't sound like a bad objective, does it?
why anonimize cell? (Score:1)
Re:why anonimize cell? (Score:4, Insightful)
Example 1: I don't want a cell phone. I hate - no, I detest - cell phones. But my job requires me to do quite a bit of traveling. That prepaid cellphone I can pick up at Walgreens for 10 bucks and toss into my glove box gives me a little comfort when I'm on the road. If my car breaks down, I can get in touch with AAA, but I don't have to pay for some bogus monthly plan that I'll never use.
Example 2: I work for a large, multinational corporation. I've repeatedly witnessed my boss discriminating against minority coworkers by assigning the good clients to my fellow white coworkers. I want to blow the whistle, and it's going to require a bit of back-and-forth communication between me and several newspaper columnists. Unfortunately, my employer nets billions of dollars per year and could easily afford a little "internal investigation" - I don't want these calls showing up on my cell phone bill.
Example 3: I'm a battered wife who finally decided she's not going to take it anymore. I left my abusive husband and temporarily moved in with a friend he doesn't know, but my husband hired a private investigator to track me down. I'm afraid that if I get a cell phone in my name, the P.I. will be able to find the billing address and come do me harm. I'm also afraid that even if I put the cell phone in my friend's name, the P.I. could get the phone records of my associates and see who's calling them, then backtrack and find me.
Example 4: I'm a volunteer coordinator for the American Cancer Society. We've arranged a 5K walk in my city to raise money for cancer research. We're going to have 20 volunteers assigned to various "stop stations" along the route, passing out water and granola bars to the participants. If anyone runs out of supplies at their station, they need to be able to contact me at the "base camp" so that I can send more. We looked into buying 20 CB or FRS-band radios, but those were pricing at 75 to 100 bucks apiece. It would be much more cost efficient to provide each of them with a disposable cell phone, but we don't believe it's necessary to have to "register" for them.
Example 5: I'm a regular guy, just like you. I'd like a cell phone, but I'd rather not have the cell phone company knowing who I am. I don't want them sending me junk mail, I don't want them calling my home number twice a week trying to get me to upgrade my plan, and I don't want them selling my name and address to their affiliates. I just like my privacy and I'd like to have a little convenience without having to sell my soul to marketdroids in the process.
It took me about 2 minutes to come up with these examples (longer to type them out). Do you need more?Absolutely. <sarcasm>And because payphones are so profitable to the telcos, they're putting more and more of them up all over the place! They love collecting 35 cents a few times a month from people who have to make unexpected calls, instead of charging those people 35 bucks a month for a cell phone they rarely use.</sarcasm> I don't know about Switzerland, but here in the US, payphones are a dying breed. It used to be, every gas station had one outside, and every shopping mall had a bank of them near the restrooms. These days, to be honest I wouldn't know where to find a payphone if I needed one.
If you don't see any need or justification for anonymous cell phones, why do you see a need or justification for (not to mention suggest using) payphones? Tracing a cellphone to a particular location is, at least in terms of technology, just as easy as tracing a payphone to a particular location. And don't payphones provide the "bad guys" with just as much opportunity to make anonymous calls?Why not? For the record, I'm not complaining, nor do I have or want a cell phone. I just can't see why anonymity is a negative thing.
Rebuttal (Score:3, Insightful)
This reasoning is bogus. Pre payed cell phones don't cease to exist. The only difference is that you have to show iden
Who needs privacy anyway? (Score:4, Insightful)
Its all in the name of national security so its all ok, right?
Now dont you feel so much safer now that you have given up another bit of personal freedom?
Re:Who needs privacy anyway? (Score:2)
That's why I run several open mail relays.
Drug Dealing (Score:2, Insightful)
More then 90% of purveyors of illicit pharmaceuticals use pre pay cell phones, which - when you think about it - makes a lot of sense to them and their customers.
I mean: Use of anonymous Swiss prepayed cards in Pakistan is - to put id mildly - highly unusual. And since a the phone serial #, the network
Anonymity is Paramount in a Democratic Society (Score:1)
I see far too many posts in this thread asking the same question (or reflecting the same attitude) in relation to anonymity:
If you're not doing anything wrong, why do you care?
What a dangerous world we live in where the /. crowd, a collection of people that I would for the most part deem to be of higher average intelligence than the general population, don't seem to have a problem with this logic. Ask yourselves a few questions, and actually take the time to think about the answers.