CIA Aided Domestic Cell Phones Spying

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March 11, 2015 12:00 pm - NewsBehavingBadly.com

[su_right_ad]Justice worked with the CIA to spy on domestic cell phones.

The CIA played a role in helping the U.S. Marshals Service develop technology that imitates cellphone towers, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. The system, used on airplanes, allows federal agents to scoop up identifying and location information for thousands of cellphones in every sweep.

The spy agency’s role in the so-called “dirtbox” program was previously unknown, and is considered unusual, given that the CIA is banned from most domestic spying operations.The collaboration between the CIA and the DOJ is likely to raise concerns from civil libertarians about spy techniques being used on U.S. soil.

Development of the “dirtbox” devices began approximately 10 years ago when the CIA arranged for the Marshals Service to receive money to conduct surveillance, the Journal reported. The two groups worked together for years to develop the technology, versions of which are used overseas to track terror suspects.

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D.B. Hirsch
D.B. Hirsch is a political activist, news junkie, and retired ad copy writer and spin doctor. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

2 responses to CIA Aided Domestic Cell Phones Spying

  1. illinoisboy1977 March 11th, 2015 at 12:35 pm

    A major concern, here, is the admissibility of evidence gathered by these means. If you’re going to present a standard criminal prosecution to a domestic court, you HAVE to fall squarely within the rules of Constitutional admissibility. Otherwise, all evidence that resulted from the unconstitutional act of warrantless spying will be considered tainted and will be thrown out. If you’re serious about fighting crime, this isn’t the way to do it. You’ll lose your case as soon as your information collection methods come up, in discovery.
    Even if you’re prosecuting a “terror” case, unless the suspect is a foreign national, you have to have articulable probable cause, before you can lo-jack someone.
    Yes, the spying is disturbing on a personal level, but it’s also unconstitutional in most cases that I can think of.
    Your thoughts?

  2. William March 11th, 2015 at 1:37 pm

    Gee, I wonder how the fair and balanced people will handle this latest scandal?

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