Militants and the Latest Mobile Phone Technology
Dec 08, 2004 1843 GMT
Norwegian police said Dec. 8 they want to stop the sale of cell phone cards
that allow the caller to remain anonymous. Their fear is that criminals
will exploit these cards to avoid detection. This concern, which has been
raised by law enforcement agencies elsewhere, could -- and should -- be
extended to terrorists.
Cell phones used in the planning and execution of attacks pose a serious
obstacle to the security and counterterrorism forces charged with
disrupting militant activities. These phones allow militants to communicate
with one another while in the field, in real time and over long distances
using cheap and readily available technology. Couple those advantages with
the latest technology -- camera phones -- and law enforcement faces a
walking, talking terrorist workshop.
On the other hand, a phone is another link in the militant chain,
presenting the opportunity for law enforcement to detect -- and thwart --
an attack before it takes place. Technology does allows security and law
enforcement agencies to determine who places a phone call or sends an SMS
text message, and to track the call to its source. This kind of evidence
has been presented in a number of criminal cases around the world, most
recently in October in a U.S. case involving a fake kidnapping in
Massachusetts.
Then again, there are ways to avoid detection.
Savvy criminals, including militants, can evade detection in a number of
ways, especially if they are operating in a developing country where
security agencies might lack the necessary tracking technology or where the
mobile phone industry is much less regulated. However, even in developed
countries, there are easy and relatively inexpensive ways to get around law
enforcement.
The cheapest and most effective method is through the use of multiple
Subscriber Identity Modules (SIM) cards -- the digital fingerprint of a
mobile phone. Authorities can track a cell phone user by tracking the SIM
card -- even if the user has not made a call. In order to avoid detection,
a savvy militant will use the SIM card only once -- to decrease the number
of chances for detection and association -- and then toss it away.
High-ranking Hamas officials allegedly use this tactic to avoid
identification and targeting by Israeli authorities. Indian authorities
warned earlier this year that militants in the Kashmir region were using
pre-paid phones (presumably with different SIM cards) to coordinate and
plan operations.
This tactic is a relatively new development -- conceived by the always
innovative criminal mind in response to law enforcement successes in
tracking suspected militants through their phones. For example, a
multinational mobile phone sting operation was integral in the capture of
suspected Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
Furthermore, mobile phones also have become almost standard equipment in
the construction of remotely detonated bombs, as they make inexpensive and
fairly reliable triggers. The March 11 Madrid train bombers used this
method to trigger their bombs -- though Spanish authorities later
successfully tracked the bombers via one of the cell phone-triggered bombs
that failed to detonate.
Cell phones used in preoperational surveillance also can present a serious
challenge to law enforcement, largely because of their now-ubiquitous
nature. In other words, a person -- criminal or not -- talking on a cell
phone outside of a building or a landmark raises no alarm bells. A cell
phone with instantaneous picture transmission can be an even better
terrorist tool.
Based on the creativity already demonstrated by some militants in the use
of cell phones -- an SMS message instructed a jailed Abu Sayyaf member to
escape from an Indonesian prison in 2003 -- new methods of evading
detection using mobile technology are likely to emerge. The development of
technology to allow users to use the same phone to call from around the
world, while changing its SIM cards, possibly is the next step.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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