Privacy advocates got access to Locate X, a phone tracking tool which multiple U.S. agencies have bought access to, and showed me and other journalists exactly what it was capable of. Tracking a phone from one state to another to an abortion clinic. Multiple places of worship. A school. Following a likely juror to a residence. And all of this tracking is possible without a warrant, and instead just a few clicks of a mouse.

    • RvTV95XBeo@sh.itjust.works
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      22 days ago

      burner goes from your house, to abortion clinic, to your office, back to your house

      Hmm, must be someone else, I don’t recognize this number

      -The Government

        • Jtotheb@lemmy.world
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          22 days ago

          You really think you came up with an airtight solution to device tracking that nobody in the industry has considered on a whim?

            • Jtotheb@lemmy.world
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              22 days ago

              That was possible over a decade ago.

              Link Link Link Link

              Also to be clear, you suggested that you bring a burner phone and set up call forwarding. That implies a phone that’s on. If you’re carrying a burner phone that’s off, I do have a novel solution, just don’t bring it

              • midnightblue@lemmy.ca
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                22 days ago

                No that’s not easily possible on every phone. It’s a specifically crafted FakeOff malware, used by the NSA for targeted attacks. This is not something that just randomly gets deployed on every phone, it’s only used against individual targets. Use GrapheneOS to harden your Android device as much as possible, to defend against such malware getting installed in the first place.

                You really think the NSA will get involved to track someone who wants to get an abortion?

                That was possible over a decade ago.

                You know what also existed over a decade ago? Faraday bags. This concept of physics isn’t new.

                Just stop spreading fear and misinformation.

                • Zink@programming.dev
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                  22 days ago

                  You really think the NSA will get involved to track someone who wants to get an abortion?

                  Probably not, unless it’s an exceptional case where they are already interested for another reason.

                  But if, say, county sheriffs across the country also got access, I would be surprised if I didn’t hear about women’s and doctors’ lives being ruined by them.

                • Jtotheb@lemmy.world
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                  21 days ago

                  Yes, yes. If you want to avoid being tracked by the government buy a Faraday bag. Thank you for the valuable information. I’m in awe.

              • capital@lemmy.world
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                22 days ago

                Hm. I said without power. Not switched off.

                Judging by the upvotes you’re far from the only one who forgot about simply removing the battery.

                I suggested no power but not for the entire trip. Put the battery in when you’re sufficiently far from your house so as not to be associated with it. Remove it again when you’re sufficiently close to your house.

                Use your imagination. It helps.

                • Jtotheb@lemmy.world
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                  21 days ago

                  You know, we can talk about how batteries aren’t removable in most phones anymore, about whether or not the act of suddenly buying prepaid phones isn’t itself incriminating, any number of factors, but I really only replied to you because you were rude, not because I wanted to talk about it.

                  • capital@lemmy.world
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                    21 days ago

                    Strange. You wanna be done so suddenly after being shown how obvious the solution is.

                    we can talk about how batteries aren’t removable in most phones anymore

                    So don’t buy those. Buy one with a removable battery….

                    whether or not the act of suddenly buying prepaid phones isn’t itself incriminating

                    Go use cash, in person.

                    Again, use your imagination. I refuse to believe I’m smarter than you or anyone else. These seem like obvious solutions.

                    My incredulity that the person further up the thread couldn’t think of a simple solution to the issue they posed came across as rude. I’m not sorry about it. Think for a minute….

                    I think everyone in the thread ultimately wants women to be able to get abortions without fear of prosecution.

              • capital@lemmy.world
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                22 days ago

                Keep reading the thread. I’ve already addressed this.

                Really getting confused as to how people read “no power” and think “phone off” instead of “no power”.

    • jagged_circle@feddit.nl
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      22 days ago

      Then how you gonna take a selfie in the bed?

      Seriously tho, people need phones for everything, including their calendar and map and communication with their partner.

      Not bringing a phone isn’t an option

      • WrenFeathers@lemmy.world
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        22 days ago

        I can assure you that people don’t need instant access to calendars and maps. Smart phones are a convenience, not a necessity.

        (Source - lived through the 80’s. Still alive to tell the tale)

        • jagged_circle@feddit.nl
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          22 days ago

          “And fuck all the other people who are addicted to smarphones. They don’t matter” /s

          • WrenFeathers@lemmy.world
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            22 days ago

            No, they don’t. Because if they’re weak enough to allow themselves to become addicted to a device, that’s their problem to solve. Not even else’s.

            Smartphones are a convince, a tool. Nothing more. If one can’t live without one- there’s a problem needing to be addressed.

            • frostysauce@lemmy.world
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              22 days ago

              if they’re weak enough to allow themselves to become addicted to a device

              That’s not how addiction works.

      • basmati@lemmus.org
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        22 days ago

        There are alternatives to all of that. If you’re going to do potentially illegal acts, and you don’t want to rot in jail for the next however many decades until a scotus exists to set you free, take basic operational security into account and don’t bring the corporate tracking device that cops can freely tap into.

          • basmati@lemmus.org
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            22 days ago

            That’s cute but to get those laws you have to vote third party and hope they don’t get killed or bribed before passing said law. I don’t see that happening until long after the US collapses, so in the meantime it makes more sense to understand how not to be a victim to a fascist government.

            • jagged_circle@feddit.nl
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              22 days ago

              In the US, yes. But this is mainstream in countries with democracies.

              Anyway, of course. Stein or West or youre voting for climate catastrophe, privacy erosion, and genocide.

              • basmati@lemmus.org
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                22 days ago

                The opposite, actually, they’re the only candidates, assuming you meant Stein and Claudia, that do not have any of that in their policies.

      • WindyRebel@lemmy.world
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        22 days ago

        Mapquest is still around, so that solves one problem. The rest can be alleviated by communicating in person with your partner and aligning on a plan to not get tracked (like partner driving you and leaving their phone at home).

        In the absence of that help, friends or family you trust. A cab? The clinic probably has a phone to hail a cab when you’re there.

        Disclaimer: I’m just providing work arounds, I’m not saying they’re ideal.

      • PriorityMotif@lemmy.world
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        22 days ago

        Believe it or not, digital cameras exist as standalone devices.

        You can also buy an rf blocking bag for your phone.

        • jagged_circle@feddit.nl
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          22 days ago

          Yes, you can. But thats the last thing on the mind of someone who is struggling to terminate a pregnancy in the US in 2024. We need something better.

            • T156@lemmy.world
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              22 days ago

              There are many reasons for a pregnancy to be terminated, and not all of them are for fun, or because of casual sex. Maybe the child has defects incompatible with life, or the mother is not capable of carrying to term, and attempting to do so will kill them both.

              People don’t tend to go “oh, it’s a nice Sunday today. I think I’ll pop by the abortion clinic.”

      • capital@lemmy.world
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        22 days ago

        Not bringing a phone definitely is an option.

        But I suggested a burner with forwarding so that handles comms to partner.

        If you can’t function without your main device for special circumstances such as this, I guess you just can’t be helped.

      • LunchMoneyThief@links.hackliberty.org
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        22 days ago

        Calendar

        Non digital is sufficient. And if it must be digital for some reason, no you don’t specifically need to use a serf phone for that.

        map

        I get around just fine without proprietary tracking BS. Navit + Openstreetmaps pre-downloaded binary data + detachable USB GPS transceiver.

        communication with partner

        Softphones and SIP telephony are fine for this.

        Sauce: I am a functioning adult who lives without a phone as a matter of principle.