I know wer u r. Ur fone told me
I know wer u r. Ur fone told me
New S'pore-designed software allows a cellphone user to track another's location just by sending an SMS
By Cheryl Tan & Jocelyn Lee
MOBILE phones are turning into tracking devices.
A local businessman has come up with software that allows a person to nail down another's location just by sending an SMS message to him.
Two new cellphones from Nokia - the 6110 Navigator and E90 Communicator - can also pinpoint a person's location on the phones' maps using the Global Positioning System (GPS).
The Nokia GPS tracking function works only when both parties exchange their position coordinates.
This means both sides can track each other only if both parties agree to it.
Nokia Singapore's general manager Christopher Carr said the function is intended to give consumers an opportunity to 'share where they are' and users can choose to turn the function off.
'It's up to the individual on how they want to adopt the service,' he added.
But the software, devised by local company JOPCA Solutions, is non-consensual.
All it takes is just one SMS and about a minute to locate somebody down to a radius of 50m through his mobile phone without the person realising it.
The catch? The person's phone must have the software installed.
At the moment, the software is compatible only with Nokia N-series and 6000 series phones and to those with an M1 line.
The phone does not give any indication that it has received or sent any SMS messages revealing the phone owner's location. It also does not show that it has been rigged.
This way, users of the phone remain oblivious that they are being tracked.
Lawyer Adrian Tan of Drew and Napier said tracking someone without their knowledge is not against the law.
But he said that installing the software without the knowledge of the owner is illegal and is 'equivalent to hacking into a computer' which contravenes the Computer Misuse Act.
'It's just like a spyware for mobile phones,' Mr Tan added.
Lawyer Sunil Sudheesan of KhattarWong Partnership raised a possible scenario where a father buys a phone for his son and does not tell him that the tracking software has been installed.
'In such a case, it would be legal as the father would be the owner of the phone,' he said.
The software costs between $600 and $900 to install, depending on the phone model.
But even the steep pricing is not enough to deter customers from asking for the software.
JOPCA business developer Michael Ng, 42, said he has had more than 50 customers since the product was launched in May.
The bulk of his customers - almost 80 per cent - are parents 'who want to know where their kids are'.
These parents are willing to spend for that 'peace of mind', said Mr Ng.
The rest are suspicious spouses and delivery company bosses who need to know where their employees are.
Mr Ng said an Indonesian Chinese businessman brought three new Nokia N70 phones, meant as gifts for his teenage children, for him to install the software.
The father, who works overseas, wants to know where his children are when he is away.
'I think that's reasonable,' said Mr Ng, who does informal interviews with his clients to find out their reasons for wanting the software.
He draws the line at installing the software for individuals to spy on their partners, choosing to decline even an additional offer of $1,000 by one desperate client.
A professional in his mid-30s, the client called late at night demanding that the software be installed in his spouse's phone immediately, Mr Ng said.
The look of desperation and nervousness in his client's eyes when they met that same night prompted Mr Ng to turn him away.
He later advised his client to consult a private investigator but was scolded for being a busybody.
'I don't want to do such business. I don't want to be responsible for ruining a marriage,' he said.
New S'pore-designed software allows a cellphone user to track another's location just by sending an SMS
By Cheryl Tan & Jocelyn Lee
MOBILE phones are turning into tracking devices.
A local businessman has come up with software that allows a person to nail down another's location just by sending an SMS message to him.
Two new cellphones from Nokia - the 6110 Navigator and E90 Communicator - can also pinpoint a person's location on the phones' maps using the Global Positioning System (GPS).
The Nokia GPS tracking function works only when both parties exchange their position coordinates.
This means both sides can track each other only if both parties agree to it.
Nokia Singapore's general manager Christopher Carr said the function is intended to give consumers an opportunity to 'share where they are' and users can choose to turn the function off.
'It's up to the individual on how they want to adopt the service,' he added.
But the software, devised by local company JOPCA Solutions, is non-consensual.
All it takes is just one SMS and about a minute to locate somebody down to a radius of 50m through his mobile phone without the person realising it.
The catch? The person's phone must have the software installed.
At the moment, the software is compatible only with Nokia N-series and 6000 series phones and to those with an M1 line.
The phone does not give any indication that it has received or sent any SMS messages revealing the phone owner's location. It also does not show that it has been rigged.
This way, users of the phone remain oblivious that they are being tracked.
Lawyer Adrian Tan of Drew and Napier said tracking someone without their knowledge is not against the law.
But he said that installing the software without the knowledge of the owner is illegal and is 'equivalent to hacking into a computer' which contravenes the Computer Misuse Act.
'It's just like a spyware for mobile phones,' Mr Tan added.
Lawyer Sunil Sudheesan of KhattarWong Partnership raised a possible scenario where a father buys a phone for his son and does not tell him that the tracking software has been installed.
'In such a case, it would be legal as the father would be the owner of the phone,' he said.
The software costs between $600 and $900 to install, depending on the phone model.
But even the steep pricing is not enough to deter customers from asking for the software.
JOPCA business developer Michael Ng, 42, said he has had more than 50 customers since the product was launched in May.
The bulk of his customers - almost 80 per cent - are parents 'who want to know where their kids are'.
These parents are willing to spend for that 'peace of mind', said Mr Ng.
The rest are suspicious spouses and delivery company bosses who need to know where their employees are.
Mr Ng said an Indonesian Chinese businessman brought three new Nokia N70 phones, meant as gifts for his teenage children, for him to install the software.
The father, who works overseas, wants to know where his children are when he is away.
'I think that's reasonable,' said Mr Ng, who does informal interviews with his clients to find out their reasons for wanting the software.
He draws the line at installing the software for individuals to spy on their partners, choosing to decline even an additional offer of $1,000 by one desperate client.
A professional in his mid-30s, the client called late at night demanding that the software be installed in his spouse's phone immediately, Mr Ng said.
The look of desperation and nervousness in his client's eyes when they met that same night prompted Mr Ng to turn him away.
He later advised his client to consult a private investigator but was scolded for being a busybody.
'I don't want to do such business. I don't want to be responsible for ruining a marriage,' he said.
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