Due to the current nature of the messages on this reflector about Rfi and
helping neighbors, maybe it is time for the sharing of an interesting story
a friend of mine told me about that happened in a southern state.
Seems a friend of hers was thinking about getting out of ham radio, when she
asked why, he bemoaned about the technical void of the general public, and
how tired he was of being blamed for issues he had no control over. Many
were Rfi issues, but some were starting to do in the Elmer in him. Seems
that the less some know about something, the stronger the opinion..... and
there are a lot of strong opinions out there by those that think "we' are
invading their privacy. Not just public individuals, but also law
enforcement!
Some even threatened him physically, and antenna cables had been cut.
So before you educate others about how their wireless activities are really
radio activities, make sure they don't know where you live.... hi hi
73 from Bill - WD8ARZ
wd8arz@ix.netcom.com
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----- Original Message -----
From:
To:
Sent:
Subject: Privacy 101 - A True Story
Beware of what you do about helping others be aware of wireless privacy
issues. The following is a true story! This is the first time this has been
shared over the internet. Because the transmission in question is now off
the air, I feel more comfortable detailing the story.
About two years ago I began to notice a carrier with a slight hum on
3.515Mhz. With all the digital stuff running in the house I have tons of
carriers, some quiet, and some with various types of modulations (tones,
hums, digital, etc), so did not pay it much attention, especially because
it was there night and day, thus not propagation affected. Then one night
while tuning around, I hear this phone conversation on that same frequency,
in narrow fm! Two women were chatting and sounded like a normal wireless
phone conversation connection, but on this frequency?!? I began monitoring,
and over the next couple of weeks I noticed some odd things. I never heard
an incoming ring, touch tone dialing, or pulse dialing. One moment it was a
quite frequency (with a slight hum in a.m. or f.m. mode), and the next you
heard the phone conversation. This told me this was no normal wireless
phone, had to be professional. I was convinced that it was ac powered (the
hum), was crystal controlled, with a very slight temp drift between the cool
weather frequency and the warm weather frequency.
Listening continued for a few months. Strange enough was that the
conversations were all normal. No cussing, nothing illegal, almost always
a mother and her daughter talking to friends, and family. At first I figured
this is some legal bug, but I was not hearing conversation to justify that
motive. Well, maybe it is an illegal bug. If so, what do I do about it? The
family seemed nice enough.
So I did a partial investigation. Took my hand held broadband receiver and
went direction finding. Note that this is not a scanner, but much more, but
it is about the typical size of hand held scanner made in the last few
years. Fits in a shirt pocket easily. In a short time I had tracked down the
house that the signal was coming from, just a couple miles from me. Nice
home, small lot, typical block with houses close together on a paved road,
much like any other subdivision from the 60's or 70's.
I went home and pondered this situation for a long time. More weeks went
by. Eventually I decided if this was a illegal bug, I was obligated to let
them know. By this time this had become a kind of Carl and Jerry mystery, or
a Hardy Boy's story of the typical kind, and I was hooked!! I wanted to know
what was going on, and boy did I want to look at that bug!!! So I took the
plunge.
After talking to a friend about what I wanted to do, I went to the home in
question (even though my friend thought that was a bad idea). Hey, come on,
I am being a nice guy and want to help out if I can, right?
I knocked on the door and the daughter answered, I asked to speak to her Dad
or Mother. The Mother came to the door and I explained who I was, gave my
name and showed my drivers license as proof. I was even wearing my ham
jacket with my name and callsign on it. I wanted them to be relaxed and not
think some scam was going on or some kook was bothering them. After
explaining what I had been hearing she got very suspicious and wary. She was
finding this difficult to believe and was not having any credibility in what
I was explaining. I noticed by the front door a panel set in the brick wall
with a cover on it. I opened it, and it was an electrical connection with
about a dozen connections available. Now that was odd. She knew nothing
about it, said it was there when she moved in. I asked if I could walk
around the property and see if I could tell wither the bug was outside near
a telephone or power line lead in..... she reluctantly agreed. At this point
I
decided maybe I would not ask about going into the home, though I was
very disappointed to not see this bug.
Walking around the outside of the home and property convinced me that the
bug was inside the house and on the phone line system antenna wise. The
signal was weaker at the power pole, the power box, and strongest at the
phone line box AND the connector on the front of the house. But the phone
line connector was the strongest. I explained all that to her.
Next I explained to her and her daughter that I was puzzled, and did not
know if this was a legal or illegal bug. Therefore I suggested that they NOT
talk about this over the bugged phones, and to think about what their next
step should be. I suggested the police, the Fbi and the Fcc. But I also
suggested that anyone of them may be the source of the bug, and even the
husband might. He ran his own business as a construction contractor
they told me at this point. This bothered me as I thought, oh sh.t, maybe
the mob is evolved. I didn't want to be anywhere around that issue, so I
left wishing I had not been so open about who I was. Darn!
When I got home, of course I went back to monitoring, just to see if I had
any effect or not. Wouldn't you know it, there was the daughter on the phone
telling her boy friend all about what had just happened!!! There was not a
secret about the phone being bugged anymore. At this point I was not sure
where to go with this any further. So I stayed away and continued to listen.
Next thing I know the mother is complaining to others about me using a
scanner to listen in on her phone conversations. Said a ham friend of hers
told her that was how I was doing it, and it had nothing to do with a bug.
So much for a our fraternity helping out. I had made it very clear in my
visit that this was not a cell phone or wireless phone frequency, but a bug
frequency inside the eighty meter amateur radio band. Further discussions by
her to others over this bugged phone system made it clear that now she and
her family were uneasy about some kook bothering them and listening in on
their private phone calls and what she could she do about it. Now I was
getting bugged. Here I was trying to help out and now this thing had
taken an unexpected turn of events. I especially I was bothered about
them being upset and genuinely concerned about what I had done to create
the wrong impression.
So, what I did next was to type up a one page memo explaining all that
I had already told them, explained about the differences between cell phone,
wireless phone, and bug frequencies, and of course amateur radio. I was
clear in explaining that the information from their ham friend was well
meaning, but wrong in this case, and to make sure he was told about the
frequency this bug was on and he would be convinced of the problem and could
help out. I further stated that I was bothered by how they were shooting the
messenger, and I that I only had honorable intentions. That it was time for
them to get professional help and to quit speculating about me or what I was
doing. Also explained the need to have the telephone company to remove the
bug if nothing else.
Because it was clear at this point that she did not remember my name or call
letters, I decided to play it safe this time. I did not let the two typed
pages
or the envelope I put them in get any of my finger prints on them. I used
gloves and placed this information between the crack of her front door and
door frame at a time when they were not home and I would not be noticed
in the area. Even parked on a different block.
Of course I went back to monitoring, convinced that now all would be well,
as I had set the matter straight. Right! Wrong!!
Now the conversations over the bugged line was really bad. She was angry,
so angry that I was harassing them that she took the information I had
given them to the police and filed harassment charges. But, they did not
know who I was but she was going to find out!!!! I was breaking several
laws in her eyes, and she was going to nail me. She said her ham friend
said to check out the local couple of blocks looking for ham antennas
and check that out. Fortunately I was much further away then that, and my
ham jacket was a club group in the opposite direction of where I actually
lived.
Turned out she was also angry at the police. They had confiscated the two
copies and the envelope to try for finger prints. She no longer had the
information I had given her and they wanted her to pay for copies if she
wanted them. Darned if she would do that she said!
Now I was mad, frustrated and just a little bit worried. My friend said she
told me so, I should have stayed out of it.
Next the conversations changed to how they had called in the phone company
and no bug was found. Still they had a new phone line and new phones to be
put in the next day. Two days later the carrier was still there, but no more
audio conversations were heard for the next several a weeks. Then the phone
audio came back. Seems the daughter was complaining about not having a
working phone in her room so they tied the old phone line in her room to the
new phone line, and viola, they were back on the air again!
Now I felt like I had some pirates in my ham band and I wanted them out!!
One day when I knew only the daughter was home, I stopped by and explained
to her that they were wrong, and they were back on the bug again and I would
never be back.
Now the conversations on their end was taunting and accusing me of being the
source for the bug. Many things were being said that I began to think that
the police felt that they had some sort of psychopath here and was trying to
lure him back for entrapment. What a mess. I frankly felt self preservation
was the best merit here and gave up.
The bug was active for about another six months or so before it finally went
off the air. That was about six months ago. I haven't gone back and wont.
For awhile there I wished I had a untraceable internet account that would
have let post information about this bug to some of the hobby sits on the
internet. I was convinced that this signal could be heard out of state at
night, especially in the winter time when there was no static. At one point
they even put a computer on line and I was tempted to send email, but
I had no way to do that with out being traced. Even the library computers
would not let un-ided usage. I wanted to set the record straight and clear
my self...... but now I have to live with things the way they are.
Would I help out in this area again? NO WAY!
Question? Am I a wanted man????
(The preceding is a true story)
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