[privacy] Who's buying cell phone records online? Cops

["Richard M. Smith" <rms () bsf-llc com>]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12534959/

Who's buying cell phone records online? Cops 
Net sellers tell Congress they supply law enforcement officials with call
lists

By Bob Sullivan
Technology correspondent
MSNBC
Updated: 3:52 a.m. ET May 1, 2006

A congressional panel investigating the fraudulent acquisition and sale of
mobile phone records by Internet Web firms has collected evidence that
indicates law enforcement officials at the local, state and federal levels
use the Internet-based services as an investigative short-cut, MSNBC.com has
learned. At least one Web-based data seller has told Congress that the FBI
is a client.

The phone records are generally acquired by the resellers through fraudulent
means and would not be admissible in court as evidence, but they are still
helpful as an investigative tool, say officials familiar with the
investigation.

The alleged use of the customer records by law enforcement officials could
raise legal and ethical questions, as it would circumvent due process and
years of established laws protecting consumers from random eavesdropping on
electronic communications.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee and its Oversight and
Investigations Subcommittee are looking into the fraudulent acquisition of
consumer cell phone records by private investigators and online data sellers
- an issue that exploded into the public sphere earlier this year after a
blogger was able to purchase cell phone records of former presidential
candidate Gen. Wesley Clark. But the business was thriving online long for
years before that, with hundreds of Web sites advertising that they could
obtain anyone's cell phone records for about $100.

The committee is attempting to learn who's selling the cell phone records,
and who's buying.

FBI says it looks to private firms for help

As part of its inquiry, the committee has asked dozens of Web sellers to
reveal their customers lists. MSNBC.com has viewed one such list, and spoken
with several other data sellers.

One seller, Advanced Research Inc., which operates ADVSearch.com, told the
committee that it has sold data to the FBI.  

"On occasion, ARI (Advanced Research) has done work for municipalities,
banks, mortgage and insurance companies, private companies, foreign
governments, law enforcement, even the FBI," ARI's letter to Congress said.

...

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