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I mean surely mobile phone operators already have this information? I never hear about them being subpoenaed or attempting to deny requests, makes me think the
by andy_ppp 7y ago
I mean surely mobile phone operators already have this information? I never hear about them being subpoenaed or attempting to deny requests, makes me think the make this information fully available.
- g_p 7y agoOperators currently have handset location data, based on cell tower triangulation. I imagine many will store this, but this may vary by network. The absolute minimum you need, in order to run a network, is to know the current location of the handset, so you can route calls to it. Historical data isn't required for delivery of the service. I imagine in countries with weaker privacy laws, data like this can be used like we saw with the "tracking spring break beach-goers heading home". Triangulated location data is far from precise however. It would let you determine roughly where someone is, but nothing like accurately enough to do contact tracing or infection monitoring. You'd also need to start storing historical location data on a huge scale, but it would be accurate to a few hundred metres typically. Not ideal for contact tracing.
- andy_ppp 7y agoDNS + WiFi + Mobile phone masts etc. You could probably get some real location data by augmentation with coopted social networks add in some AI for expected locations and regular appointments. Do iPhone photos include location data in the exif data? I think the information exists but it’s just used by spooks right now is all.