Related
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/20...+wired/index+(Wired:+Index+3+(Top+Stories+2))
WTF? How is this legal? I think most smartphone users DON'T know about this. How do they get their spy-crap on our phones anyway? Is there an antispyware to stop this?
Read the article, what a pathetic way to try to convince people that spying on them is harmless. No idiots here, fool.
i smell class action law suit. Hopefully the payments will go out to Trev, XDA, and the EFF
Yeah every day seems to get worse for them
I can see how the technology could be useful.
But there are too many questions unanswered.
1. the privacy of the end user.
2. the costs involved for the end user.
3. the reasons for it being hidden from the end user.
Exactly Omega, exactly right!
P.s. for anyone who hasn't read the full article, few features;
1 Microsoft says this never has or will be on Windows Phone 7
2 Apple says this has been on many devices up until iOS5
3 No word on Android (oh ****)
4 This is done through the carriers. They usually add this after it's manufactured. So this is the 'extra layer' they add on. I suppose that means once we put on Cyanogen, that stuff is gone - because nothing from those guys remains.
5. They said this is mostly in the US...the US carriers then. They mentioned 3 big ones in the article, I think two of them were T Mobile and Verizon.
We know that almost every device is watching us, but the stuff that spyware does is incredible...
So far can only find this on yank carrier branded devices. Maybe something to do with the Patriot Act, the grubberment wanting to know what you be doing on your phones.
Yes, the government were mentioned, as one of the main parties despite the carriers wanting that info.
Separately, I stumbled upon a company which says it sells tech. subverting software to governments which gets through devices like Blackberry. So all those BB users in the Arab world are not getting private communication, even if they're paying for it and believing it.
if anyone is interested, I posted a thread in General as well to go after them. The lawyer said the more people we can get signed up the greater attention it will get. Help out and try and make a difference.
illuminati guys the government is spying on us to try and take over the world. Why do you think in the US b/c they are the government with the most power.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using Tapatalk
Please continue discussion here
so apparently the German government (and other entities) have been using silent sms attacks to keep tabs on its civilians
they send a silent sms to someones phone, it dosent show up at all on their device, but it pings back Imei numbers and other info, which can be cross reffed with the operator log of the towers and used to compile an entire movement profile for an individual
now i dont know about you but as an upstanding citizen this kind of crap concerns the heck outta me.
i believe further exploration into some sort of defense against ssms attacks is in order but it is way above my paygrade
I'm not so sure about this.. So the mobile OS developers, operators and the government(s) are involved in this? To me this sounds like someone is a bit paranoid.
It is possible and may not be at the behest of the cell providers. Look at the things that the US government has done in this regard. The patriot act here in the states gives the government the right to view and track calls, emails, and so forth. Though it could be a false alarm it is possible. :s
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using xda premium
Eeroz said:
I'm not so sure about this.. So the mobile OS developers, operators and the government(s) are involved in this? To me this sounds like someone is a bit paranoid.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not the OS developers, it purely has to do with the carriers. I remember reading a lot about similar things in the past, like pinging a phone, class 0 sms', etc. Does anyone have any related links, whether relating to the governments use or these pinging sms' in general? Sounds like an interesting topic!
ishmael345 said:
It is possible and may not be at the behest of the cell providers. Look at the things that the US government has done in this regard. The patriot act here in the states gives the government the right to view and track calls, emails, and so forth. Though it could be a false alarm it is possible. :s
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hear you there. Look at the new chip they want in all cell phones in the US starting this year for government based SMS for terrorist threats and amber alerts. Wonder why it is gonna be connected to the GPS and phone mic?
I'm pretty confident that the government and to be more precise law enforcement have all right to keep track of you and your movements if they see fit.
In saying this though, most governments and once again to be more precise law enforcement will only track you and record your activities should you be doing activities that would force them to.
You aren't doing anything you shouldn't be doing are you?
PS I had to give my mobile number to an officer of the law the other day, to say the least I'm kind of paranoid that they will look through previous texts that I have sent which could be incriminating, but in saying this I'm more than happy to accept my fate should such predicament come to haunt me.
My point is that if you need to ensure you aren't being recorded or tracked, do your illegal activities on a phone which cannot be traced back to you.
Edit this image is relevant to this thread.
http://www.philzimmermann.com/images/TinFoilHatArea.jpg
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Any proof about this?
Do a search for Fema chips in cell phones and see.
zeekiz said:
I'm pretty confident that the government and to be more precise law enforcement have all right to keep track of you and your movements if they see fit.
In saying this though, most governments and once again to be more precise law enforcement will only track you and record your activities should you be doing activities that would force them to.
You aren't doing anything you shouldn't be doing are you?
PS I had to give my mobile number to an officer of the law the other day, to say the least I'm kind of paranoid that they will look through previous texts that I have sent which could be incriminating, but in saying this I'm more than happy to accept my fate should such predicament come to haunt me.
My point is that if you need to ensure you aren't being recorded or tracked, do your illegal activities on a phone which cannot be traced back to you.
Edit this image is relevant to this thread.
http://www.philzimmermann.com/images/TinFoilHatArea.jpg
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To say if you are not doing anything wrong then you should not fear having no privacy in the eyes of the government and the law is dumb. People keep information other than criminal activites private for many reasons, And that has the potential for abuse or missuse by the wrong people. For example look at American presidential campaigns Quite often they have people digging up dirt on their rivals, quite often its inconsequential dirt, but the PR firms twist it and stretch it and convert it into a duststorm of contraversy, can you imagine how much easier that type of BS would be if one political contender / group had a supporter or supporters high up with access to this information? low risk move for them, and a goldmine for their marketing firms.
hungry81 said:
To say if you are not doing anything wrong then you should not fear having no privacy in the eyes of the government and the law is dumb. People keep information other than criminal activites private for many reasons, And that has the potential for abuse or missuse by the wrong people. For example look at American presidential campaigns Quite often they have people digging up dirt on their rivals, quite often its inconsequential dirt, but the PR firms twist it and stretch it and convert it into a duststorm of contraversy, can you imagine how much easier that type of BS would be if one political contender / group had a supporter or supporters high up with access to this information? low risk move for them, and a goldmine for their marketing firms.
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Click to collapse
Agreed. Oh and while he is at it might as well tell all those people that died protecting freedom that they died for no reason because he doesn't care about his freedom of privacy.
zelendel said:
Agreed. Oh and while he is at it might as well tell all those people that died protecting freedom that they died for no reason because he doesn't care about his freedom of privacy.
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Click to collapse
I wouldn't go as far as saying died for no reason, I agree with freedom of privacy, but I also believe more or less that they would be doing this pinging for our protection.
M_Nation said:
I wouldn't go as far as saying died for no reason, I agree with freedom of privacy, but I also believe more or less that they would be doing this pinging for our protection.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know that maybe a bit harsh but some of my freinds were those that stood up for our rights and freedom and for someone to say its OK for a government to remove that right rubs me wrong.
I would to if you were innocent until proven guilty but we all know that is not the case anymore. Now you are guilty until proven innocent.
I think the days of thinking that our government is out for the good of people is long over.
M_Nation said:
I wouldn't go as far as saying died for no reason, I agree with freedom of privacy, but I also believe more or less that they would be doing this pinging for our protection.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh for my "protection" well thats okay then.
So whats your stance on carrier IQ then? after all its only sending information that will make our phone using experiance better, And from a safety issue SOPA and the Australian internet filter are brilliant, Means I can not access those nasty sites that will put me at risk, Just like in China. It does not stink of isolationisim and control at all. And all no one should want ANYTHING kept private if they are not breaking the law should they? Infact privacy breeds suscpicion. How about for everyones safety you post your private details and smses as well as your daily schedule so we know you are not going around consorting with terroists or drug dealers.
Anyone who would sacrifice liberty for security deserves neither.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA App
forget the government, they don't need to do anything.
all they need to do is contact Google and Apple.
they have us all under lock and key... in the name of convenience and technology.
we are all just bunch of *****es and whores.
Mainspring said:
forget the government, they don't need to do anything.
all they need to do is contact Google and Apple.
they have us all under lock and key... in the name of convenience and technology.
we are all just bunch of *****es and whores.
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Click to collapse
^^^^--- This.
Anyway, as far as being able to track you they would need probable cause to even begin to attempt to defend themselves if any government type decides to do this. At least enough to warrant a search a seizure. I don't know how the laws are outside of the states but I can imagine unless you're in a dictatorship or you live in a communist nation the laws are similar.
Higher-ups have always been able to do this, that's not the question. The question is the legitimacy of the situations that they decide to use their power.
LOL
I love you guys who born and grow up in the US. and Western part where democracy is practicing daily.
Coming off a communist country, I love freedom a lot but ......... if you do no harm to the nation, no harm to the country, no harm to the community and no harm to anybody, then you SHOULD NEVER worry about it.
If you say "Obama is suck and I hate him" you not gonna be jailed for that.
If you say "I hate white president and I never vote for those again", you not gonna be fined for that.
If you say "I just have sex with my g/f and she moans like crazy", they not gonna care to listen to your conversation.
But if you are up to something, potentially put the nation, commnunity at risk, yes, you are deserved to lock up for the rest of your life as the safety issue for the rest.
Period.
Yes a the moment the government can suboena Google or whoever and can get the info but at least there is a process to be followed paperwork and its all mostly in the open. So if this is the case why do they need to get this info via this chip? To me the potential for misuse outweighs the potential for safety removing a link in the chain does not nessicarily make the chain better or stronger
Sent from my HTC EVO 3D X515m using xda premium.
hungry81 said:
Yes a the moment the government can suboena Google or whoever and can get the info but at least there is a process to be followed paperwork and its all mostly in the open. So if this is the case why do they need to get this info via this chip? To me the potential for misuse outweighs the potential for safety removing a link in the chain does not nessicarily make the chain better or stronger
Sent from my HTC EVO 3D X515m using xda premium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Look at all the articles about how carriers gave the FBI an open ticket to their systems. The government has been doing unwarrented wire taps for years now in the name of security which is BS.
As for the previous comment no you don't get in trouble for things like that but let me tell you a true story about a buddy of mine.
He and his girlfreind got into an argument where she made up lies about how he said he would kill her for threating to run away with their child. The cops find him on a bus leaving state. Tosses him in jail for 4 weeks until he sees a judge as their is no bail in the state for demestic issues. Then he get 6 months probation and has to pay $4000 in fines. Cant go to trial as she cant be found. Now he has assault on his record and is having trouble finding work as all it says is ASSAULT nothing else. All for words he never said. But even if he had it was still just words. Nothing more. No history of violence. Just an empty threat.
Yeah freedom right. Guilty until proven innocent
Wow, never heard this until now
http://www.androidauthority.com/google-issues-statement-regarding-support-for-cdma-devices-50545/
I'm done. More fragmentation.
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qhinton said:
http://www.androidauthority.com/google-issues-statement-regarding-support-for-cdma-devices-50545/
I'm done. More fragmentation.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Blame your carrier for using bs CDMA...
lowandbehold is right here. Google didn't create the cdma vs. gsm thing you guys have going on there in the US.
.
Thread moved. Would advise you to read forum rules and post in correct section.
Failure to comply with forum rules will result in an infraction and/or ban depending on severity of rule break.
its not our fault that cdma carriers are so much better than GSM ones here in the US. google shouldn't be doing this to its users, it's not like they're any less good as developers just because they choose the superior network (in some areas.)
Sent from my ICS SCH-i500
sageDieu said:
google shouldn't be doing this to its users
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Click to collapse
Did you even read the article? Google can't do anything about it. The carriers have created a situation where a ROM cannot be created without them signing the phone apk. In other words, your verizon nexus already isn't AOSP because some of its core functionality is reliant on custom, locked, carrier-installed crap.
This whole issue could have been avoided by verizon/sprint allowing/providing unsigned cell network apks. I'm quite sure google has asked for this by now. The carriers chose to be dicks about it, they chose to make timely google updates impossible, so they don't get google support. Lay the blame where it belongs.
This is why i hate CDMA.. though they have good signal, they are worst in this case.
The levels of fragmentation are incredible, really. And Google happily continues to turn a blind eye to it all. It's sad, really, because Android has some real potential if it were handled better.
Sent from my SGH-I897
i'm not sure why you guys are *****ing. from a PR perspective, Google did the right thing, hands down. Told you what was going on, and stated that they are going to work on it. just because they didn't say they were going after the carriers in a vicious way you guys are mad. ridiculous...
As another said before, don't blame google, blame the carrier. they are the ones that are messing it up
Always the carriers fault. Sigh.
-Sent from my Rezound-
ridethisbike said:
As another said before, don't blame google, blame the carrier. they are the ones that are messing it up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's Google's fault that the carriers are in a position to mess it up.
Sent from my SGH-I897
Hmm somehow Apple doesn't have this problem. Updates available day 1 for both GSM and CDMA phones. Google has no choice but to cater to the carriers since Android is Trojan horse for data mining and mobile advertising while iOS puts consumers first. Truth is Google doesn't care about fragmentation, they're focused on volume at all costs. Since Google(and everyone else with half a brain) are well aware that no single Android phone will come close to iPhone sales they need to get as many manufacturers on board as possible, which necessitates letting carriers run the show. Great for Google since they get to sell your personal data to advertisers, but sucks for the consumer.
alex2792 said:
Google has no choice but to cater to the carriers
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Click to collapse
Well, not exactly. They're making the decision to give the power to carriers rather than give it to consumers like Apple and Microsoft do. They could choose otherwise, but they really don't care about you and me.
My two cents tells me Google can fix a lot of issues that Android has by, closing it, not making it Open Source. Then there would be an even bigger cry out towards Google. By closing Android, Google can control every aspect of Android, as they see fit, forcing OEMs to adhere to Google's strict guidelines and policies. That is not what Google had envisioned for the Android OS. Instead Google gave OEM's and Carriers the infrastructure,sources, and starting point to create their own vision.
Giving these Companies free rein to create, ultimately Google gets what they wanted, more Google searches (form devices), creating more revenue for Google. So you might say that Android was not created for the consumer, as much as another revenue stream. Google just needs to keep Android appealing enough to the consumers, and allow OEMs and Carriers to do the rest. I'm surprised that the carriers don't provide Google with the ability to sign the .apks themselves, that would take the responsibility away from the Carriers, and solely on Google's shoulders.
Just thinking out loud hear.
sageDieu said:
its not our fault that cdma carriers are so much better than GSM ones here in the US. google shouldn't be doing this to its users, it's not like they're any less good as developers just because they choose the superior network (in some areas.)
Sent from my ICS SCH-i500
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
^This
Not all of us live in an area where we are free to choose between GSM and CDMA. I live in a rural area where At&t reception can be spotty, T-mobile and Sprint are almost non-existent and Verizon gets a signal pretty much everywhere.
google confirmed with the verge that it will push updates to verizon galaxy nexus! ... please don't jump to conclusions.
alex2792 said:
Hmm somehow Apple doesn't have this problem. Updates available day 1 for both GSM and CDMA phones. Google has no choice but to cater to the carriers since Android is Trojan horse for data mining and mobile advertising while iOS puts consumers first. Truth is Google doesn't care about fragmentation, they're focused on volume at all costs. Since Google(and everyone else with half a brain) are well aware that no single Android phone will come close to iPhone sales they need to get as many manufacturers on board as possible, which necessitates letting carriers run the show. Great for Google since they get to sell your personal data to advertisers, but sucks for the consumer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android is not a trojan horse, seriously most of your comments on android seem very negative and often just apple rhetoric.
Android has to run on lots of phones so its hard to unify that whereas iphone is just one. Very easy to update one phone model whose only difference is carrier type as opposed to thousands of different ones.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk
The only way to fix this fragmentation is for google to move to a more apple like approach to selling phones. If they locked down android to where manufacturers had to meet certain specs before they could use android or had to follow certain rules, then there would ultimately be less choice for the consumers. I think what makes android great is the wide range of options we all have, even if that means we have to wait a while for the carriers to upgrade us to the newest OS. We're all aware that when we buy these phones they have a chance of lagging behind the "newest and greatest thing". Just take Android for what it is, a diverse platform that is very fragmented, because thats not going to change.
mistermentality said:
Android is not a trojan horse, seriously most of your comments on android seem very negative and often just apple rhetoric.
Android has to run on lots of phones so its hard to unify that whereas iphone is just one. Very easy to update one phone model whose only difference is carrier type as opposed to thousands of different ones.
Dave
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So if Android's number one goal isn't enabling Google to push "personalized" ads then what is it? I'm negative about Android because Google places carrier interests ahead of the consumer resulting in shoddy user experience. Apple isn't perfect and their propensity to omit seemingly basic features does annoy me at times,but even with that said the iPhone offers a far more pleasurable experience. When I use an Apple product I can see that they really put a lot of thought into creating a first rate experience(which is why they have a ridiculous retention rate) while Android OEMs are just trying to push something out the door. For example used the Galaxy Nexus for a few weeks and I've encountered a ton of issues with reception,random data drop outs and abysmal battery life even with 4G turned off, which simply don't exist on the iPhone. I'm not an Apple fanatic, just someone who enjoys solid, reliable products that "just work" without me needing to spend hours tweaking ****.
wrong forum..
Since unlocking phones (for carrier use) becomes illegal starting tomorrow, we have made a petition to fight back.
Please sign!
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/make-unlocking-cell-phones-legal/1g9KhZG7
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RBarnett09 said:
Since unlocking phones (for carrier use) becomes illegal starting tomorrow, we have made a petition to fight back.
Please sign!
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/make-unlocking-cell-phones-legal/1g9KhZG7
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can do nothing with a petition like this now, this is scheduled to be looked at every 3 years, in 3 years you will have a chance to be heard and get this changed, however, we are stuck with this for at least 3 years.
Milimbar said:
You can do nothing with a petition like this now, this is scheduled to be looked at every 3 years, in 3 years you will have a chance to be heard and get this changed, however, we are stuck with this for at least 3 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed. I'm sure the White House is getting a nice chuckle from this petition.
Sent from my ADR6400L using xda app-developers app
Here's the thing about what people may see as a pointless petition.
They are all pointless until created. No matter if this will make any difference or not.
Petitions aren't meant to go by guidelines or by what the current law or cycle of voting represents.
In fact, if we all just sat idly by while things happen around us and shrug our shoulders because well, that's what the law is and it doesn't come back up for discussion for 10 years, so let's just leave it as is, even though the majority of us are against it.
I guess my point is, no matter how small of a change or difference one person may think they will be or make, unless they start somewhere, they may as well roll over like everyone else.
Change starts with YOU!
(or you can accept things for the way they are dealt to you)
Santod is right. If enough people sign it will get attention and maybe it will be enough that it doesn't have to wait for three years before it is brought up again. If we keep allowing the cell companies to control how we use our property then eventually we won't have any control of it. This kind of crap needs to stop somewhere. This idea of not allowing us to decide if we want to stay with a specific carrier is bs. Would you like it if a bank said you had to remain in the same property, exactly the way it was originally purchased for the duration of the contract? Probably not.
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
Nexus 4, 7, 10 ... ++ More Nexus is the way to go now. Besides, I font see the point in an ithing or win8.
A reason to get one now and get away from VZW, I say.
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
Why is this crap being posted in forums for Verizon phones? It simply doesn't apply - VZW has never carrier locked their phones.
mike.s said:
Why is this crap being posted in forums for Verizon phones? It simply doesn't apply - VZW has never carrier locked their phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apparently you don't understand.
It will be illegal for us to unlock our phones to use them how we want to... HTC or not.
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This law affects all carriers. The only way around it is to get your carrier to unlock the phone for you or buy an unlocked phone from the start. They are only making it illegal to unlock your phone without their knowledge or permission.
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disconnecktie said:
This law affects all carriers. The only way around it is to get your carrier to unlock the phone for you or buy an unlocked phone from the start. They are only making it illegal to unlock your phone without their knowledge or permission.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This definitely won't stop most people.
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RBarnett09 said:
This definitely won't stop most people.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A $500,000 fine and 5 years in prison sounds like a pretty good deterrent to keep most people from doing though. I think they are mostly targeting the businesses that are capitalizing on something that the carrier will do for people most of the time. I think part of the problem is that people get a phone on contract and since the phone is subsidized when they don't pay their bill the phone company eats the cost of the phone. If they are able to unlock the phone and use it somewhere else they basically get a free phone.
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Plus from what I heard on the radio if you own a phone already then you can unlock it and flash it to whatever carrier. Online petitions are a joke. As you can't prove the people existence because of of no signatures. I could type out ten thousand names names easily. You want change? You want action? Then call your congressmen or woman and voice your dislikes. Have your family,friends,coworkers, and so on to call. Tell them you are not happy and unless you see action you will vote for the other guy. Keep calling and if enough people calls something might be done.
Or you could go the easier route and just buy a google branded phone and not have to worry about the stupid law lol. It is funny people don't seem to care about stuff till its to late.
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
disconnecktie said:
A $500,000 fine and 5 years in prison sounds like a pretty good deterrent to keep most people from doing though. I think they are mostly targeting the businesses that are capitalizing on something that the carrier will do for people most of the time. I think part of the problem is that people get a phone on contract and since the phone is subsidized when they don't pay their bill the phone company eats the cost of the phone. If they are able to unlock the phone and use it somewhere else they basically get a free phone.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Holy....
I was unaware of that kind of punishment. That's insane.
How would someone get caught unlocking a phone though?
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I'm pretty sure that the esn will tell the new carrier where the phone came from. Plus you would have to know because unlocking it is probably different depending on which carrier you are coming from. There was a law passed recently that makes it illegal to take a phone with a bad esn and unlock it to use with a different carrier as well. The major carriers also have the ability to make a bad esn phone no good across most of the other carriers too.
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Milimbar said:
You can do nothing with a petition like this now, this is scheduled to be looked at every 3 years, in 3 years you will have a chance to be heard and get this changed, however, we are stuck with this for at least 3 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
tm24fan8 said:
Indeed. I'm sure the White House is getting a nice chuckle from this petition.
Sent from my ADR6400L using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who's laughing now!!!??
As I said before, it all starts with us guys.... :good:
Official White House Response to Make Unlocking Cell Phones Legal.
(NOTE: This is in regards to carrier unlocking, not bootloader unlocking)
Source: LINK
It's Time to Legalize Cell Phone Unlocking
By R. David Edelman
Thank you for sharing your views on cell phone unlocking with us through your petition on our We the People platform.
Last week the White House brought together experts from across government who work on telecommunications, technology, and copyright policy, and we're pleased to offer our response.
The White House agrees with the 114,000+ of you who believe that consumers should be able to unlock their cell phones without risking criminal or other penalties.
In fact, we believe the same principle should also apply to tablets, which are increasingly similar to smart phones. And if you have paid for your mobile device, and aren't bound by a service agreement or other obligation, you should be able to use it on another network.
It's common sense, crucial for protecting consumer choice, and important for ensuring we continue to have the vibrant, competitive wireless market that delivers innovative products and solid service to meet consumers' needs.
This is particularly important for secondhand or other mobile devices that you might buy or receive as a gift, and want to activate on the wireless network that meets your needs -- even if it isn't the one on which the device was first activated.
All consumers deserve that flexibility.
The White House's position detailed in this response builds on some critical thinking done by the President's chief advisory Agency on these matters:
the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).
For more context and information on the technical aspects of the issue, you can review the NTIA's letter to the Library of Congress' Register of Copyrights (.pdf),
voicing strong support for maintaining the previous exception to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) for cell phone carrier unlocking.
Contrary to the NTIA's recommendation, the Librarian of Congress ruled that phones purchased after January of this year would no longer be exempted from the DMCA.
The law gives the Librarian the authority to establish or eliminate exceptions -- and we respect that process.
But it is also worth noting the statement the Library of Congress released today on the broader public policy concerns of the issue.
Clearly the White House and Library of Congress agree that the DMCA exception process is a rigid and imperfect fit for this telecommunications issue, and we want to ensure this particular challenge for mobile competition is solved.
So where do we go from here?
The Obama Administration would support a range of approaches to addressing this issue, including narrow legislative fixes in the telecommunications space that make it clear:
neither criminal law nor technological locks should prevent consumers from switching carriers when they are no longer bound by a service agreement or other obligation.
We also believe the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), with its responsibility for promoting mobile competition and innovation, has an important role to play here.
FCC Chairman Genachowski today voiced his concern about mobile phone unlocking (.pdf), and to complement his efforts, NTIA will be formally engaging with the FCC as it addresses this urgent issue.
Finally, we would encourage mobile providers to consider what steps they as businesses can take to ensure that their customers can fully reap the benefits and features they expect when purchasing their devices.
We look forward to continuing to work with Congress, the wireless and mobile phone industries, and most importantly you -- the everyday consumers who stand to benefit from this greater flexibility -- to ensure our laws keep pace with changing technology, protect the economic competitiveness that has led to such innovation in this space, and offer consumers the flexibility and freedoms they deserve.
R. David Edelman is Senior Advisor for Internet, Innovation, & Privacy
Tell us what you think about this response and We the People.
Alright fair enough, good job guys!
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Translation they agree but not really going to do much about it lol.
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santod040 said:
Who's laughing now!!!??
As I said before, it all starts with us guys.... :good:
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I signed it also, and just got my e-mail like 35min ago.
I don't know if it will change anything short term, but if nothing else.... at least next time it comes up for review it should turn out more favorably. Hopefully they will step in and push through some intermediate legislation before the next scheduled review though.
Milimbar said:
I signed it also, and just got my e-mail like 35min ago.
I don't know if it will change anything short term, but if nothing else.... at least next time it comes up for review it should turn out more favorably. Hopefully they will step in and push through some intermediate legislation before the next scheduled review though.
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That would be nice, but would require Congress to stop bickering for more than a minute...
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I saw this and thought the same, what's this really going to accomplish? And then the posted article where it apparently did accomplish something. Seems like that's not always the case... But in general, I guess it's not a ton of effort to click in and sign an online petition, so if my one vote does almost-nothing-but-still-something, I guess the return on investment is slightly higher than what I get for typing a single forum post.
Although, if the law is meant to keep people from ditching their carrier and not paying their bill and having the phone "for free", there is the spot they're going to get on their credit when it goes to collections. Getting denied for credit or getting a worse rate for the next 7 years doesn't seem completely devoid of consequence.
As most of you are aware it has recently become illegal to unlock carrier branded phones purchased after January 26th of this year. This is a petition to the White House to repeal or amend that decision. There are three days left to garner another 1500 signatures. Please take the time to create an account and sign this petition.
http://wh.gov/yA9n
Thanks
I've already signed it for myself,and for my wife. Now, if only my 3 friends on Facebook and g+ would follow the link I posted back when I signed, we'd only need 1497 more signatures. Lol
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bps119 said:
I've already signed it for myself,and for my wife. Now, if only my 3 friends on Facebook and g+ would follow the link I posted back when I signed, we'd only need 1497 more signatures. Lol
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It's all good. Just hit 105,500. So at least the government will take a look at it. 115,000 wouldn't hurt though.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/02/white-house-must-answer-for-ban-on-unlocking-cell-phones/
"The White House is going to have to provide answers on whether it thinks cell phone unlocking should be illegal. Unlocking cell phones unties them from specific carriers, allowing users to switch to a different cellular provider. This was legal until recently, when the Library of Congress decided not to renew the Digital Millennium Copyright Act exemption for unlocking.
Outraged cell phone users filed a White House Petition demanding the reversal of this policy. The petition was filed just days after the White House said petitions would only get an answer if they received 100,000 signatures within a month, rather than the previous threshold of 25,000.
The cell phone unlock petition passed 100,000 today, two days before the deadline. You can still sign it if you wish."
I sure I am not alone in feeling as though this is absolutely unacceptable, and hope the unlock law gets changed. It is understandable for the courts to try to help prevent or at least try to stop piracy and other unlawful acts, and to try to protect the carriers from exploitation, but for the very act of performing an unlock to now be a punishable crime is just terrible. I commend all of you who are part of the petition, or just against ethis new ruling and trying to get it changed. Good luck to you all in this endeavor.
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While I agree that it should be changed, I think the law is more aimed at less than reputable carriers (Cricket comes to mind in Phoenix, at least) that will unlock and flash any phone to their network, regardless of its status (stolen, etc).
For that reason alone I would support the law, but only if it included a provision for allowing the legal owner to unlock the phone at his/her discretion.
Beamed out of the Void
Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati
For anyone who hasn't seen yet:
http://www.androidcentral.com/white...uld-be-legal?utm_source=ac&utm_medium=twitter
liquidzoo said:
For anyone who hasn't seen yet:
http://www.androidcentral.com/white...uld-be-legal?utm_source=ac&utm_medium=twitter
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Sweet, so only a couple of years of bureaucratic crap to jump through and we got it!
There's no way in hell they're taking away those rights. I love modifying and adding meaningless crap to my phone, changing its values and maxing/undering whatever I want. It's an addiction really. It's no different than buying a car at a dealership. Are there laws and rules to what you can and can't add to your car? Sure, but none that really matter. If I was to add a body kit to the new lancer I'm buying this year and the government says "Uhhhh yeah, you can't do that because (insert meaningless reason here) and (more crap here)" then I'm going to tell'em to suck it :angel:
Spartan111 said:
There's no way in hell they're taking away those rights. I love modifying and adding meaningless crap to my phone, changing its values and maxing/undering whatever I want. It's an addiction really. It's no different than buying a car at a dealership. Are there laws and rules to what you can and can't add to your car? Sure, but none that really matter. If I was to add a body kit to the new lancer I'm buying this year and the government says "Uhhhh yeah, you can't do that because (insert meaningless reason here) and (more crap here)" then I'm going to tell'em to suck it :angel:
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This has nothing to do with rooting glad to see you're uninformed.
It's about carrier unlocking which from a business perspective i can understand but i don't agree with it.
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