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The Law of Unintended Consequences
“Give him enough rope and he'll hang himself.” That is a line often directed
toward someone who is engaging in nefarious activities without realizing he is being
monitored and abetted in seeing to it that he orchestrates his own downfall. Sometimes,
though, well-meaning folks unwittingly are accomplices to their own adversity. If
you are an engineer, technician, manager, or salesman who has participated in the
development and/or deployment of wireless technology, you may have already set the
stage for your personal waterloo.
You know you are being watched, right? Constantly, right? Cameras in bank lobbies
and clothing stores have been around seemingly forever to record archival data in
case it is needed later in the pursuit and/or prosecution of a perp. Technology
evolution then gave us more ubiquitous wireless video surveillance that performs
24/7 sentry duty in the Wal-Mart parking lot, on schoolyard playgrounds, at busy
road intersections, and in high crime areas of urban neighborhoods. We hardly noticed
its evolution, mainly because viewing of the records was limited largely to those
responsible for security.
Then, along came the Internet and all restraints for invasion of privacy were
removed. Take a walk along the beach, stroll downtown on the sidewalk past the bakery
or pizzeria, cruise an interstate highway through a metropolitan area, withdraw
money from an ATM, or even go to the zoo, and there is a good chance that somebody
will (or at least could) see you in real time while sitting in front of a computer.
More than a few people have been unpleasantly surprised to find videos or still
shots of themselves turn up on websites like YouTube. There is nowhere to hide,
it seems, if you are to go about your life in a “normal” manner. There could easily
be dozens or hundreds of images recorded of you in your travels - anywhere in the
world. Far from being merely the contrived imagination of a helpless paranoid, this
is a very real phenomenon.
It gets worse. RFID and other wireless reporting systems now make not only seeing
you, but tracking your movements and habits even simpler. I have linked to many
headlines over the years that tell the story of criminals being tracked down and
apprehended through the assimilation of data from recording and tracking devices
spread over sometimes very wide regions. With relatively little effort, law enforcement
can subpoena camera and electronic recordings from any and all sources that lie
within an area of interest. Agents can utilize the cellular telephone networks and
lately WiFi nets to track your path from point to point if you are using those services
while on the move. That GPS receiver in your phone or laptop is especially appreciated
because it provides much greater precision than does triangulation off of multiple
cell towers or access points (there is more to the mandate for E911 than just finding
you if you've fallen and you can't get up). Keep in mind that your cell phone is
in nearly constant communication with the network even when you are not talking
with someone - it just needs to be turned on. Zipping through the E-ZPass toll booths
provides not only a simple digital record of your having been there, but a snapshot
of you as well just in case it is needed later - remember to smile on the way through.
You are not a criminal, though, so you have nothing to worry about. Don't be
so sure. The OnStar system in GM vehicles has provided unwelcome evidence in more
than one civil court action. Wives have hired lawyers who have obtained subpoenas
to obtain information on the whereabouts of their cheating husbands at clubs, motels,
or other places they should not have been. Husbands have taken the same action against
their wives. Guess what? Your cell phone can provide a lot of the same information
- dates, times, and locations (at least from which cell area). The standard computer
in your car is constantly filling a buffer with information about your driving speed,
acceleration, and braking. Police accident investigators routinely do a data dump
at the scene for information that can and will be used in court against you (or
in your favor if you are lucky). Credit card swipes, which all feed back into a
central collection database, are prime targets for use in mounting a prosecution
against you.
Are you worried yet? Have you done something that now you are a little concerned
that somebody, somewhere has recorded it, but at least so far has no reason to use
it against you? Have you been to any "questionable" websites lately, or maybe on
a regular basis? Do you use an online alias under the erroneous assumption that
no one really knows who you are? Don't count on it. Do you post anonymously on forums
and blogs, or do a little bit of online gambling, all the while being confident
that it is just your little secret? Unless you are a true black hat operator, you
are not fooling anyone. Your tracks are sitting on your computer, in worldwide web
routers, in your employer's nightly tape backup, maybe on your flash drive, and
any number of other places. Maybe it's time to do a total system restore with a
hard drive format, but even that can be "undone" if investigators know what they
are searching for. Maybe you should just buy a new computer and trash the old one;
that way all traces are gone - like melting down the murder weapon.
Now we have people volunteering to have RFID chips implanted, similar to the
ones the animal shelter injects into adopted cats and dogs. In February of this
year (2008), a New Jersey policeman became the first reported case of a person being
saved due to having an RFID tag implant with his medical history in it. Given enough
time, maybe through force as a part being eligible for treatment under the seemingly
inevitable socialized health care system that is coming to America (and already
implemented in most other countries), we might all be sporting an RFID chip. Operational
ranges for the devices are increasing all the time so that a near field scan will
no longer be necessary. That means setting up monitoring points as an integral part
of store checkout lines, taxi cab meters, bus and train portals, vending machines,
parking meters, and bathrooms, not to mention the other locations previously mentioned.
The difference is that now you can personally be associated with buying those cigarettes
even though you use cash, or maybe it will be a couple Snickers bars when you are
a diagnosed diabetic. Wait until your government-assigned physician learns about
that! Undergoing therapy for a gambling addiction and trying to buy a lottery ticket
or a deck of cards? You're busted! Trying to buy more gasoline than your personal
carbon footprint quota allows for? You're busted!
Who can you blame for what exists now and what is being developed for the future?
Why, maybe that trite old saying about three fingers pointing back at yourself when
pointing the index finger at someone else really does have some merit. After all,
as I stated in the beginning, if you have in any way helped to develop or deploy
the technology, you have essentially given up your right to abstain from self-incrimination
in a court of law. Nice going.
That Cell Phone In Your Hand Is A Tracking Device
Chips: High-Tech Aids or Tools for Big Brother?
Lawyers
Using E-ZPass to Expose Adulterous Spouses
New Jersey Motorcycle Officer Loses Leg Following Crash
Posted March 6, 2008
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