DIALING FOR DEVILS

Since the invention of the telephone we have had exponential growth in the ability to communicate. This has been a remarkable part of our evolution. The telephone also was instrumental in bringing us the internet. In the past we may remember the dial up and pinging sound of the modem connecting us anywhere around the world.

We continue to see how communication has enabled us to become more informed and improve work load and efficiency. However, we are now realizing that the telephone and the internet particularly social media has been seen as a tool for spying on the American people.

It also has been seen as a threat to national security as organizers of rally’s and protests have used twitter and the cell phone as a way to organize flash mobs. The cell phone was also considered a weapon during the Boston Bombing as it was theorized that the bombers detonated their ordinance using cell phone detonators.

The government now has sophisticated number relays and hijack interceptors that are being used to cancel phone conversations or track them down if they sound as if they are threatening national security.

It was reported in the international press, not in the Amercian press that the United States has within its borders cell phone towers that are not being used to transmit cell phone communication. They are literally hijacking towers that intercept some calls and shut them down.

More than a dozen “fake cell phone towers” could be secretly hijacking Americans’ mobile devices in order to listen in on phone calls or snoop on text messages, a security-focused cell phone company claims. It is not clear who controls the devices.

ESD America, which markets heavily-encrypted cell phones built within the body of a Samsung Galaxy S3, said it was able to locate numerous towers intercepting mobile communications – but does not know who is running them.

Speaking to Popular science magazine, ESD America CEO Les Goldsmith recently said that the company has used its phone – the CryptoPhone 500 – to map 17 different fake cell phone towers, dubbed “interceptors,” across the United States. Locations include New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, and more.

“Interceptor use in the US is much higher than people had anticipated,” he told the website. “One of our customers took a road trip from Florida to North Carolina and he found 8 different interceptors on that trip. We even found one at South Point Casino in Las Vegas.”

Although these interceptors act as fake cell phone towers, they are not necessary large, physical structures. They could simply be small mobile devices that act exactly like a real tower, deceiving phones into giving up information. Such devices are known as “stingrays,” after the brand name of one popular type of interceptor.

Once connected to a person’s phone, they can bypass the mobile device’s encryption to either listen in on calls or capture texts. In some cases, they are also powerful enough to take over a device or make it seem as if it has shut down – only to leave the microphone on in order to eavesdrop.

The American Civil Liberties Union has been Attempting to pry information about government and police use of stingray equipment, but its efforts have been met with resistance from federal officials.

According to ARS TECHNICA, the Federal Communications Commission pledged in August to investigate the “illicit and unauthorized use” of interceptors – with a primary focus on foreign governments, criminals, and terrorists – but denied a Freedom of Information Act request to reveal more data about current stingray use.

Now there are a number of people who believe that the sting ray interceptors are simply being used by our government to spy on terrorists. The truth however is far more chilling. Investigators have seen interceptor technologies on around military bases and police agencies, however there are some towers that have been placed in various parts of the country and no one knows who has placed them there and why.

There are some investigations that have uncovered hidden or camouflaged interceptors that have been erected by the Russian and Chinese governments. Some of the interceptors are being used by a spy network to get information in the same way Numbers stations convey codes that have to be decoded and then sent.

It is a very sophisticated network and it is very cloak and dagger as many Americans take for granted that their cell towers or any cell tower is actually sending calls, rather than intercepting and listening to calls.

There are at least 19 known bogus cell phone towers operating across the United States that could be used to spy upon, and even hijack, passing mobile communication.

Mobile phones seek out and establish contact with the nearest compatible cell tower, or at least the one with the strongest signal, jumping from one “cell” to another as they move around. However, while each phone has to prove its authenticity to each tower (to verify that the cellular service has been paid for), towers are under no obligation to verify their own identities to phones.

That’s where bogus towers come into play. Also known as “IMSI catchers,” they’re used by law enforcement in many countries, including the U.S., to collect the IMSI identification numbers of the SIM cards on GSM and LTE phones. Even without any phone calls or texts sent or received, a phone’s IMSI will be logged by every nearby cell tower, real or fake.

A bogus tower with a signal stronger than other nearby towers can force decryption upon targeted devices. High-end bogus towers can relay outgoing communications to genuine cellular network and thereby stage man-in-the-middle attacks; the targeted user can place calls and send texts, usually with no indication that he or she is being monitored.

Bogus towers can even be used to deliver malware by attacking the baseband processor, as several proof-of-concept hacks demonstrated at security conferences have shown. It’s possible that the much-rumored, but never proven, ability of the National Security Agency to use a phone that’s been “turned off” as a microphone depends on baseband malware.

Remember there are only 19 fake towers that have been found and their purpose and who is responsible for their use is still a mystery.

Wes Skotko who is a producer for the Ground Zero show was told the other day to clear out all the files and recorded CD files of Ground Zero material that had accumulated in a production studio at the flagship station KXL FM. The clearing out of files is normal as old hard copy files, notes and CD’s with sound effects and music wind up in a virtual production morgue and is actually salvaged for possible use at another time.

What Wes found was a goldmine of classic Ground Zero material. He also mentioned that in the files and notes that were kept in the studio he found a list of telephone numbers and wanted to know if they were numbers that were from listeners wishing to be contacted about contests and prizes. I told him to give me the list of numbers and that I would call them when I arrive at the office to see who they belong to.

Well, for some odd reason these numbers were not listener numbers, but phone numbers of strange intercept recordings. Intercept recordings are the recordings that say “We are sorry but the number you have dialed is not in service.”

My curiosity got the best of me and so I continued dialing the numbers to see what each one was connected to. It was fascinating and a bit creepy as I dialed numbers that connected to not only intercept calls, but number sequences, agent code interfaces, a number with strange answering machine and a number that had a European ring tone and then engaged in what sounded like a bunch of lost souls yelling hello into their hand set.

I figured that when a call is intercepted or shut down they are immediately transferred to the recording stating that the call is either blocked, not in service or traced.

It was actually a peculiar experience.

Out of all the creepy intercepts that I called there was one that certainly made me think about what the future holds for this country, It was an intercept call that I believe no one has heard and that is an intercept that stated “We are sorry but due to Military activity in your area we have blocked your call.”

It was most definitely a real intercept call that is waiting in the wings for the possibility of Military interception.

Perhaps this is what all of the commotion is about and that the military will be able to shut down phone service if it is warranted or if we fall under Martial law.

The issue of online and telephone surveillance has taken on added urgency with the explosion of social media and chat services and the proliferation of different types of online communication. Technology firms are seen as critical sources of information about crime and terrorism suspects.

There have also been concerns about kill switch capability where phone service and internet service can be shut down by the government or the military. I am now curious if the phone intercept recording that I found about the military and phone service proves that this is the case and that interception and phone blackouts will become the norm if we are in a national emergency or if there is a terrorist attack.

Giving the government intercept capability would guarantee more hacked systems in the future, and the inevitability of virus infections on computer systems, all for the so-called protection from terrorists.

We have all been duped into believing in the smooth pabulum that has been created by consultants, ad agencies and spin doctors that downplay and belittle the reality of tyranny. They blind side the public with issues like abortion, immigration, and global warming. Things like constitutional rights are no longer important to the average American citizen. Fear has determined that the constitution is a worn out document that is a death sentence. That is why the shadow government will maintain continuity at all costs and they are waiting in the wings to enforce martial law.

The most confounding thing is why people will speak out about gun control, and fight for their right to bear arms, but fall short when privacy issues arise, especially issues regarding the use of your smart phone or computer.

The Unitary executive model of leadership in this country is now in play and the first thing that will have to go is your ability to communicate. The information and communication channels are going to be the next target by officials, because it is becoming more difficult to control the consensus reality.

Call it a power-grabbing conspiracy theory – call it what you will – we are close to having it completed. We are so close to having an emperor who will order to the neutralization of anyone who wishes to revolt against the system that they have prepared for us.

If you want to call for help—you may reach the wrong number. It won’t be because of your mistake, it will be by design.