I hesitated to include this article since cell phone pings has always been something of an urban legend among the private investigation and bail enforcement communities. However, I do know for certain that it is absolutely possible and that many fugitives and abducted children have been recovered through the use of cell phone pinging by various State and Federal law enforcement agencies. Do you remember when President Bush went to the Middle East on a surprise visit to the troops not too long ago? The media made a big deal about the fact that the Secret Service made everyone onboard Air Force One, including the President, take the battery out of their cell phones so that the “real bad guys” didn’t know of their location. Voila! (Cell phone pinging has gotten someone’s attention.) I was convinced to include the article because a trusted peer indicated that he too had luck with a locate at one time and anyone interested in locating another person may at least have the need to understand the technology and the process of locating cellular phones.
There are two ways a cellular network provider can locate a phone connected to their network, either through pinging or triangulation. Pinging is a digital process and triangulation is an analog process.
A cell phone “ping” is quite simply the process of determining the location, with reasonable accuracy, of a cell phone at any given point in time by utilizing the phone GPS location aware capabilities, it is very similar to GPS vehicle tracking systems. To “ping” in this context means to send a signal to a particular cell phone and have it respond with the requested data. The term is derived from SONAR and echolocation when a technician would send out a sound wave, or ping, and wait for its return to locate another object. New generation cell phones and mobile service providers are required by federal mandate, via the “E-911” program, to be or become GPS capable so that 911 operators will be able to determine the location of a caller who is making an emergency phone call. When a new digital cell phone is pinged, it determines its latitude and longitude via GPS and sends these coordinates back via the SMS system (the same system used to send text messages). This means that in instances where a fugitive or other missing person has a GPS enabled cell phone (and that the phone has power when being polled, or pinged) that the cell phone can be located within a reasonable geographic area- some say within several feet of the cell phone.
With the older style analog cellular phones and digital mobile phones that are not GPS capable the cellular network provider can determine where the phone is to within a hundred feet or so using “triangulation” because at any one time, the phone is usually able to communicate with more than one of the aerial arrays provided by the phone network. The cell towers are typically 6 to 12 miles apart (less in cities) and a phone is usually within range of at least three of them. By comparing the signal strength and time lag for the phone’s carrier signal to reach at each tower, the network provider can triangulate the phone’s approximate position.
Similar technology is used to track down lost aircraft and yachts through their radio beacons. It’s not identical because most radio beacons use satellites and older cell phones use land-based aerial arrays but the principle is the same.
Not surprisingly, the phone network companies are shy about admitting they have this ability. The triangulation and pinging capability of mobile phone network companies varies according to the age of their equipment. A few can only do it manually with a big drain on skilled manpower. But these days most companies can generate the information automatically, which makes it cheap enough to sell.
Some nefarious service providers have indicated that they have either developed sources within mobile telephone service providers to be able to get this information upon request or have access to the software interfaces to accomplish this on their own (or some variant thereof). I highly suspect that these “cell phone ping service providers” I see advertising from time to time are actually using a good ol’ fashioned pretext to obtain the location of a cell phone rather than using an actual ping. If you do come across a real provider, please let me know.
There you have it- the short course regarding the technical capability of locating cell phones and those who possess them either through pinging or triangulation. Again, I cannot speak to the commercial availability of such a service but like anything else in the investigative business; for now I believe that mobile-phone pinging is largely urban myth among private investigators, fugitive recovery investigators and skip tracers.
39 Responses
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There actually is software you can do this with. The trouble is, that it is software than needs to be installed on the phone it’s self. I have had the luck of playing with phones that adhere to the open smartphone standard, and you are able to pull information from not only the cellular tower that you are paired with, but also surrounding towers. There are, in fact, several mobile navigation applications, similar to those available for phones with gps radios, that use a combination of signal strength’s and a remote database of tower coordinates to map a cellular phone to a rough longitude and latitude.
This really does nothing for the private investigator that does not have explicit access to the cellular phone in question though. You really do not ‘need’ any triangulation algorithm in place on the provider’s side to track down a phone either. Just a pretext, or better yet, someone who is actually on the phone bill, who has had their phone ‘stolen’. I guess that is still a pretext though.
Is there a way to tell if this (pinging) has been done to my phone?
does it track a history? ( where I have been ? )
Does this stop when I turn off the phone?
Thanks – interesting artical.
Ah, how times change.
So, many years ago, back when other investigators and bail enforcement agents whispered about these things, I went directly to the source and asked the toughest company to get anything from (Verizon) what I needed to give them to ping phones, and give me numbers called or calling on a marks phone.
I did get that magic door to open, and did so in a way that covered everyones butts legally. It helped me close many cases quickly. I didn’t realize until way later, I was one of the only people in the country who had on demand access in the mid to late 1990′s.
Fast forward to today. I now have access to up to the minute GPS information on my bail clients at $8.00 a ping. Most locates are available within 50ft.
@ Steven Im a bail agent and I have been searching for this type of software for awhile how can I get this. JEBAILBONDING@YAHOO. COM
Yes, Steven, please forward me pertinent info, I am in need of tracking a cell phone for similar reasons. justincasecl@yahoo.com
Yes, Steven, I could also “pay per ping” contact info.
ehansen197@yahoo.com
Thanks.
Steven, add me to the list that is asking for the cell pong information
Tsly1@hotmail.com please send me whatever you have, have been waiting for the service to cAtch up with the technology for bail recovery.
I would like to added also sam.farther@gmail.com
Thanks
add me to the list hope tis works .
I would like the ping info also. I am in the military and this would be a great tool for force protection.
Jaycoop05@yahoo.com
I would like to ask a few questons on this. Guyforhirea1yahoo.com
If anyone has a way to Ping a phone . We search for the missing.
Chuckforemansecurity@gmail.com
Also interested in this important recovery locate topic
Please contact me asap on your program to ping cell phones as i own a bonding company and need this service very bad. Thank You 720-436-8728 24hrs
I also require this service please le me know more details: mark.cantell@yahoo.co.uk
thanks Mark
Please, I am in desperate need of pinging a phone for safety reasons. Thank you to add me to your list.
I’d love the information as well. Did anyone else get a response?
davepalmer@palmerinvestigativeservices.com
I am also interested on ping software and/or service
Thx!
Steve, If you or others reading this know of a cost effective means to ping a phone I would appreciate an email.
Steve, can you please forward the pay per ping info. rkraft@uigpi.com
Many thanks,
Robert
Im a P.I. & Bail Agency & would like some info on cell phone pinging ASAP.
Thank You
I need this information. My 15 year old daughter is missing and the only info that I have is this guys number (that she met online, approx 22yrs old.)that lured her from home. I have a name but do not know if it is real. FBI and police are not helping me, all I am getting is the runaround. HELP!
Steve, please send this info along to me also thanks. Unless its Captira i dont have it thanks.
I am looking to buy some pinging software asap so if anyone has any advice please contact me as fast as possible
Please send me the software info. also.
i also need desperatly this softeare ,i lost my phone ,or shall i say it was picked up and all the person needs to do is turn on the wi fi and all my info from emails will be synced to that phone,i work for the govt so it is truly important and the phone that was taken actuallly has no number just google voice ,which will receive calls and texts and emails if i connects to any open wireless signal…please help
Please let me know on how to get a hold of the pinging software or the name of companies that charges for this service.
Joe
Steve, I am very interested in the ping software/service as well. Please advise.
Thank you,
Jim Smith
I would also like this pay per ping feature….
V Kirby
steven im a bail agent and recovery service in md and i would like you to fwd this info also Dominionbailbonds@verizon.net or info@dominionbailbonds.com
Interested in the ping software info. Thanks
Steven, Please if the information is available for pinging cell phones and/or getting gps locations, please forward. Thanks c.hegle@comcast.net
Hello,,
Please forward the pinging program also.
BirminghamBailBonds@gmail.com
Would like information on any software available. Own Private Investigation and Bonding Company.
I’d love to get the info also. signatureinvestigationsgroup@gmail.com — I’m assuming no1 has received the info or someone would have re-posted it by now.. Am I correct?
Very interested in having the software as well.
THERE IS A COMPANY IN FL THAT DOES CELL PHONE PINGS. THEY ARE VERY GOOD, BUT A LITTLE EXPENSIVE AT 175 DOLLARS PER PING. i ALSO LIKE THE FACT THAT THEY DON’T HAVE TO GET PERMISSION FROM USER TO DO THE PING.iHAD CAPTIRIA, BUT THEY TEXT THE PHONE THAT YOU ARE PINGING TO LET THEM KNOW IT IS BEING PINGED, WHICH TO ME IS NO GOOD. iF SOMEONE NEEDS THIS INFO, E-MAIL ME OR CALL ME AT 304 262 3700. tHE COMPANY THAT i USE IS VERY SECRECTIVE, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THERE WEB SITE IT LOOKS LIKE THEY HAVE A RESTAURENT BUSINESS
IKECUSTER@COMCAST.NET
I would like to know what software to use to ping cell phones or have the ability to use a geolocator service. I am willing to pay not only for the software but for the forwarding of such information. I am a licensed private investigator. Please email me at dmorris500@msn.com