Should Prepaid Phones require an ID?
Posted by Chris Leckness on 01/12/06 in Smart Phones
I was just watching a news program and there was a report about prepaid phones being used in the US for terrorism and gang related communications.
Over the last couple weeks, the FBI has been called in due to suspicious prepaid phone purchase at Target and Wal Mart. These were bulk purchase of prepaid phones.
Right now, I can go to Wal-Mart and purchase the phone pictured here for $19.98 and a pre-paid 400 minute phone card for $78.96. The TracFone Nokia 1100 GSM-P4 and 400 minutes of service for right around $100. I can take this phone and talk to whom ever I want. If my conversation gets monitored by the FBI, they don’t know who the hell I am, so I can talk about whatever I want.
These phones are becoming a problem for the FBI for this reason and are growing in popularity among gangs, drug dealers, and terrorists.
So, should the the government step in and require me to show my ID and have it logged in a book/database somewhere? (like some over the counter drugs) Apparently in Europe, this is already the case.
Written by Chris Leckness · Filed Under Smart Phones
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I agree that it’s almost too easy to get a prepaid cell phone. While requiring ID might slow down prepaid cell phone use for some illegal activity, it’s not going to stop it for most terrorists. Most terrorist groups have access to many means of fake drivers licenses, social security cards, etc that would easily pass most retail stores… especially smaller chains that don’t do any electronic checks on it.
A people who give up liberty for safety, deserve neither. Eventually the government will claim every personal liberty may be exploited by a person bent on doing evil. Hence, every personal liberty will be dangerous to the state and will become illegal.