Cell Phones to Monitor Traffic Flow

PCOL writes "The Baltimore Sun reports that Delcan technology will soon begin fullscale deployment of a system in Maryland that will mine cellphone data to determine traffic conditions such as jams and slowdowns. As long as a user's phone is turned on, the cellphone network notes the time of handoffs from cell to cell to calculate the location and speed of vehicles. Researchers say the program will reduce congestion by quickly delivering alerts on road conditions to drivers. The company says they will not track the movement of individual drivers. However, a staff attorney for the EFF says that tracking might violate federal law and 'increases the chances that information will be used for more invasive purposes in the future.'"

Re:Doesn't have to be a privacy problem.

[Tatarize]

Just wait til they track the individual cell phones, and use the calculations to catch speeders. Location and speed they travel. Then just get a bunch and find out who the cellphones belong to and ticket them.

Switch off

[slashmojo]

Don't want to be tracked? Just switch your phone off while you are driving.. safer for everyone on the road anyway..

Re:invasive

[Hosiah]

George Orwell was only 20 years too early - he got most of the rest right.

I've thought this so long, and have seen so many others say the same, that I'm supporting Orwell's canonization as an official prophet. God knows, he had a better batting average than most prophets.

What do you mean "in the future"?

[HangingChad]

However, a staff attorney for the EFF says that tracking might violate federal law and 'increases the chances that information will be used for more invasive purposes in the future.

With National Security letters blowing like leaves in the wind, that will be about 15 minutes after it's activated.

Re:invasive

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm going to need to see data on that.
here [scotsman.com]
more here [monbiot.com]
One nice quote:
Every day sometimes several times a day the protesters were stopped and searched under section 44.(12) The police, according to a parliamentary answer, used the act 995 times, though they knew that no one at the camp was a terrorist.
Another:
Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely (Lord Acton, a historian)

Re:Doesn't have to be a privacy problem.

[zippthorne]

I wish they would catch EVERY speeder. Then there'd be enough clamor that we could get the damn speed limits increased to reasonable levels. and maybe we'll stop using the rediculous rhetorical device of "if it saves one life its worth it" to pass bad laws.

The only thing that keeps bad laws on the books is arbitrary enforcement of bad laws.

The issue isn't..

[Zunni]

The issue with this isn't the current implementation. Everything that's created to better mankind or to deliver a service starts off being utopian and pristine. It just takes time for people to start finding and using the more sinister applications of this or any other kind of service.

Examples: Email - Started off with being a convenient, quick and easy way to exchange information.. Now - Cialis and Viagra ads as far as the eye can see

Web surfing - Intended as a way to access massive amounts of information quickly and easily, basically sharing the worlds knowledgebase.. Now - Pop-up, Pop-over, Pop-under, and Glom-on ads everywhere.

So in conclusion this may provide a useful service for the first year or so, then once the government realizes they need to find a specific person, or the cell phone companies need to find out how many of their subscribers travel which roadways (to help drive advertising to non-subscribers) then it will like so many other cool ideas, just turn into a pain in the ass.

Re:Doesn't have to be a privacy problem.

[krbvroc1]

and maybe we'll stop using the rediculous rhetorical device of "if it saves one life its worth it" to pass bad laws.

This country suffered over 98,000 deaths from medical errors in 1999 alone. We wont force improvements in medical records, pharmacy errors, or poor IT systems in our medical system, but we will slow down the economy by 10 mph for a few lives.

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