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Want to cross the border illegally? There's an app for that
- Mz 17y agoMakes me wonder what the potential legal repercussions are for developing an app to help folks do something illegal like cross the border.
- coderdude 17y agoCouldn't be more than the repercussions of being a "Border Angel" leaving water out there to help those who are going to do it anyway. The app developer can just use their slogan: "Saving People's Lives" (yes, they put it in quotes too).
- Mz 17y agoHow much you wanna bet this app will be used to track those folks down by The Law?
- anigbrowl 17y agoHow is that going to work, unless they are putting out locate data? GPS is passive reception.
- Mz 17y agoThe article states: "We were also able to add other information, like where to find water left by the Border Angels, where to find Quaker help centers that will wrap your feet, how far you are from the highway—things to make the application really benefit individuals who are crossing the border." So it sounds to me like they are giving out information which could potentially lead you to the whereabouts of such helpful sorts of people.
- anigbrowl 17y agoOh, I see. That wasn't exactly a secret prior to this, though - I thought you meant some novel way of finding crossers by tracking the phone, as opposed to exploiting existing information available on paper maps or suchlike.
- Mz 17y agoI hadn't thought of that, but if people actually make phone calls, their location can be approximated based on the cell towers that picked up the call (or so I understand -- I imagine there are folks here who know way more about that process than I do).
- coderdude 17y agoThat's a good point. It could very well be just as easily used to rat these people out.
- ig1 17y agoWell at least the developer has an escape route planned out ;-)
- anigbrowl 17y agoSource: http://www.viceland.com/int/v16n11/htdocs/follow-the-gps-225.php?page=1 http://www.viceland.com/int/v16n11/htdocs/follow-the-gps-225... An interesting interview on the more traditional 'grey hat' aspects of hacking.
- Mz 17y agoI actually like this guy's thinking. For example: "I would imagine they won’t be too happy with us, but again we’re not trying to hide. It’s a safety tool. It’s not trying to resolve the political anxieties of these communities or resolve the inadequacies of a fictional border for a so-called free-trade community. Again, our position is that it’s not a political resolution; it’s a safety tool. That, at the core, is what we’re attempting to do." In Meyers-Briggs terms, I'm a Perceiver, not a Judger. A big part of what I do in life is rethink and reclassify and question current mental models, assumptions, and classifications. I look for that "third option" (a la http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TakeAThirdOption http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TakeAThirdOption) on a regular basis. So thanks for the link.
- kpanghmc 17y agoFor every "Border Angel" trying to help illegal immigrants cross the border, there's a "Minuteman" trying to prevent it from happening. I wonder if this app will do more harm than good for this guys' cause. It's only a matter of time before the people in the "Minuteman Project" figure out that they can go raid/camp out/etc. near these water sources/help centers and do ... well, whatever it is they do when they spot an illegal immigrant crossing the border.
- mynameishere 17y agowhatever it is they do when they spot an illegal immigrant crossing the border They call the border patrol. Can you believe such wickedness exists?
- ubernostrum 17y agoYeah, at least they have the decency to wait until you're in the country before murdering you in your home: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/06/13/20090613fatalhomeinvasion.html http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/06/13/20090613fa...
- JshWright 17y agoI assume your use of "they" refers to "Minutemen" as a whole. Regardless of your opinions on the illegal immigration debate, the article seems to indicate the folks involved in this crime were not accepted by the Minuteman movement. I doubt even the perpetrators would suggest the killings were motivated by their anti-illegal immigration beliefs. Would you have used the same language to group the entire Muslim faith in with those who commit terrorism? Don't get me wrong, I suspect we probably hold fairly similar opinions on the immigration issue. I just don't think false generalizations add anything useful to the conversation.
- ironsam 17y agoCalling the border patrol is wicked or are you being sarcastic?
- deleted 17y ago
- eam 17y agoIllegal immigration has always been a touchy subject. I applaud Ricardo Dominguez for his effort and for standing up to save human lives. In regards to the app, it would certainly be a double-edged sword. If I were an illegal immigrant, I would only rely on this app if I were lost and had no other resort to survive. In such case it would be valuable.
- jacobolus 17y ago> double-edged sword What's the other edge? It seems to me that crossing the border with this tool is strictly better than crossing without it.
- furyg3 17y agoBorder patrol also having access to the app... waiting for you at one of the safety/shelter/water points?
- dagw 17y agoBorder patrol already have access to all this information and much much more from various surveillance equipment they use. If you make it across the border without being caught by border patrol then it is purely due to lack of manpower and other priorities by the border patrol and not due to lack of intelligence on their part.
- the_real_r2d2 17y agoProbably this would be illegal, but crowsourcing the position of border patrols is another use. It would add social network capabilities to the app.