Is cell phone pinging really possible (and legal) for private investigators?
We asked reporter Sean Cole to find out.
HAL: I became PursuitMag’s executive editor in the autumn of 2012, but the magazine’s been around a lot longer than that. And back in the summer of 2008, the original editor, L. Scott Harrell, posted an article with the following headline: “Locating Mobile Phones Through Pinging and Triangulation.” That is, finding someone you’re looking for by turning that person’s cell phone into a kind of homing device.
Over the years, that article set a record for the most hits of any PursuitMag story ever…and it’s still getting lots of hits to this day—apparently, because a whole lot of people type “cell phone pinging” into Google search. People really want to know if this is possible, and if so, how to do it.
Of course, in technological terms, 2008 is primeval. So when I stumbled across this article again, I got to thinking: What’s possible NOW in terms of pinging a mobile phone? And what’s legal? So I got a hold of an old radio buddy of mine, Sean Cole, and asked him to make some calls.
To find out what Sean Cole learned about current cell phone pinging and triangulation technology and laws, click below:
Produced by Storyboard EMP
Host: Hal Humphreys
Music provided by Jason White (who composed our theme) and Lullatone.
Special thanks to producer Sean Cole (This American Life), and engineer Simon Gugala.
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