Centre to map your phone network

[karira]

Centre to map your phone network

NEW DELHI: The government has decided to create a database of all mobile and fixed line calls within the country in an ambitious and unique attempt to track unlawful activities by identifying calling patterns and mapping social networks.

The system will help the government track complete networks of “people who could possibly be involved in unlawful activities by creating a national database of all individuals. Analysis of their call data records using advanced artificial intelligence techniques can help control unlawful activities,” the department of telecom (DoT) has said.

The DoT’s expenditure statement, which will be tabled in the Lok Sabha shortly, contains the broad outline of the plan and its rationale.

The Centre has already allocated Rs 15.4 crore to the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) to meet the initial costs associated with building this software platform called ‘Security Management for Law Enforcement Agencies’. C-DOT is an autonomous scientific and technical arm of the DoT.

The system will work like this: If you have a mobile or landline connection, the government will be able to keep track of the people with whom you interact with or talk to most often — by scanning your telephone data records continuously. The calling pattern of every individual which consists of the frequently-called numbers will be tracked and analysed by a fully automated software platform that will be built by C-DOT.

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top align=left>This comes as the government feels that a database on both the identity and social networking matrix of all individuals based on their telephone usage pattern can help provide useful inputs to the country’s national security agencies. Mobile phone communication is playing an important role in tracking unlawful or terror-related activities. Phone records and calling patterns of suspects have often helped security agencies achieve breakthroughs in important cases.

“With the massive and foreseeable subscriber base of 400 million over the next five years, there is a need for the development of computational approaches using artificial intelligence techniques, biometric devices, crypto analysis, voice recognition technologies, grid surveillance, encryption/decryption and mining databases for security of the telecom and data networks and to provide useful inputs to the national security agencies,” the DoT has said in the expenditure statement.

Many countries have surveillance laws

Globally, many countries are enacting surveillance laws which give governments more power to tap the communication systems. For instance, the US recently passed ‘The Protect America Act of 2007’, which gives its government sweeping powers to tap any and all electronic and telephonic communication by anyone and anywhere without even obtaining a court order.

The move raises the issue of invasion of privacy. But the government has categorically made it clear that this software platform was not aimed at snooping into conversations or to carry out any warrant-less tapping programme, but would only be used to create a database that maps every individual’s social circle — based on his or her telephone usage — for security reasons.

This security management system will act as a digital law enforcement agency that will be linked to the telecom networks of all service providers. “Information will be sent via encrypted tunnels and digitally signed to ensure that the integrity of information is preserved,” the DoT report added.

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[Abhinav Bohare]

As per the present law it is mandatory for any security agency including the national agencies like Intelligence Bureau and RAW to officially get a letter from Home Secy of the State to the General Manager ot BSNL Distirct for keeping any such Phone tapping or mapping or over hearing.

But this is exclusively for National security reasons and never done in general.

Though some times various Intelligence Agencies and Local Police Officials , have been alleged by Opposition Parties, Business man and other such Influencial persons of illegal phone recordings etc.

But by and large National Intelligence agencies under the permission of Home Secy is empowered to excersie such monitoring when national security call for.

Over all the present terror conditions are worsening but we already have the above powers whenever we need to monitor for security threats...

Further Intelligence Agencies also regularly maintian all the data records of mobile connections etc

So if at all DOT is thinking of the above enactment ...It seems that without properly excersiging above exsisting methods they are going to far to invade personal rights...

But thn we are living in democracy....and its still a proposal like 4000000000 others such bills and proposals in Pariliament from 60 years

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

Abhinav