SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Data from location accuracy company X-Mode tracking cell phones from spring breakers shows how the coronavirus could have spread from just one beach. (Image: X-Mode/Tectonix/screenshot)
Cell Phone Tracking Analysis Shows Where Florida Springbreakers and New Yorkers Fleeing Coronavirus Went to Next
"First thing you should note is the importance of social distancing. The second is how much data your phone gives off."
Mar 27, 2020
A viral video showing cell phone data collected by location accuracy company X-Mode from spring break partiers potentially spreading the coronavirus around the U.S. has brought up questions of digital privacy even as it shows convincingly the importance of staying home to defeat the disease.
"I don't know what scares me more, the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
--Roberto Rocha, CBC News
"First thing you should note is the importance of social distancing," tweeted Daily Dot journalist Mikael Thalen of the video. "The second is how much data your phone gives off."
The data in the video, which X-Mode fed into mapping platform Tectonix, shows people from one Florida beach over spring break departing the Sunshine State and spreading around the country, mostly to the Northeast.
The company also tracked people fleeing the outbreak from New York City.
"It's a glimpse into the power and scope of mobile tracking data, which the tech companies claim is anonymized to not reveal information about the owner of the device," wrote Newsweek's Jason Murdock.
According to Thalen's report on the data for the Daily Dot:
X-Mode states that the data used is "anonymized," meaning a cellphone's location is not linked to its user's identity. Tectonix took that raw data and honed in specifically on devices moving between 3 and 10 miles per hour in an attempt to pinpoint cellphone owners believed to be walking or traveling with bikes or scooters.
"I don't know what scares me more," tweeted CBC News reporter Roberto Rocha, "the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
In a report Wednesday on the outbreak, the Guardian revealed that the cell phone industry's international regulatory body the GSMMA is considering developing a global data-sharing system to track people from their devices in order to help contain the coronavirus outbreak.
Such a move would come with myriad privacy and security concerns and would be sure to generate intense backlash from civil liberty advocates around the world.
As the Guardian reported:
Until now the use of mobile phone tracking in the fight against Covid-19 has been restricted to national governments, which are either monitoring data within their borders or in discussions with mobile operators and technology companies about doing so.
They include the US, India, Iran, Poland, Singapore, Israel, and South Korea. The British government is engaged in talks with BT, the owner of the UK mobile operator EE, about using phone location and usage data to determine the efficacy of isolation orders.
The concept of an international mobile tracing scheme would go further, enabling authorities to monitor movements and potentially track the spread of the disease across borders.
The risks of letting state and corporate powers overrun civil liberties is real in a moment of crisis, warned the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Cindy Cohn on Monday.
"We already see calls from companies seeking to cash in on this crisis for unchecked face surveillance, social media monitoring, and other efforts far beyond what medicine or epidemiology require," said Cohn.
While there is a need to keep safe and healthy for the good of the community, Cohn continued, that should not come at the expense of vigilance over freedom and civil rights.
"Right now, when real science is so often under attack, those of us who care about truth, health, and each other need to take seriously the things that science and medicine are telling us about how to keep this virus from spreading," wrote Cohn. "And we also need to be vigilant so that we come out the other side of this crisis with a society we want to live in and hand down to our kids. We can--and must--do both."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
A viral video showing cell phone data collected by location accuracy company X-Mode from spring break partiers potentially spreading the coronavirus around the U.S. has brought up questions of digital privacy even as it shows convincingly the importance of staying home to defeat the disease.
"I don't know what scares me more, the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
--Roberto Rocha, CBC News
"First thing you should note is the importance of social distancing," tweeted Daily Dot journalist Mikael Thalen of the video. "The second is how much data your phone gives off."
The data in the video, which X-Mode fed into mapping platform Tectonix, shows people from one Florida beach over spring break departing the Sunshine State and spreading around the country, mostly to the Northeast.
The company also tracked people fleeing the outbreak from New York City.
"It's a glimpse into the power and scope of mobile tracking data, which the tech companies claim is anonymized to not reveal information about the owner of the device," wrote Newsweek's Jason Murdock.
According to Thalen's report on the data for the Daily Dot:
X-Mode states that the data used is "anonymized," meaning a cellphone's location is not linked to its user's identity. Tectonix took that raw data and honed in specifically on devices moving between 3 and 10 miles per hour in an attempt to pinpoint cellphone owners believed to be walking or traveling with bikes or scooters.
"I don't know what scares me more," tweeted CBC News reporter Roberto Rocha, "the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
In a report Wednesday on the outbreak, the Guardian revealed that the cell phone industry's international regulatory body the GSMMA is considering developing a global data-sharing system to track people from their devices in order to help contain the coronavirus outbreak.
Such a move would come with myriad privacy and security concerns and would be sure to generate intense backlash from civil liberty advocates around the world.
As the Guardian reported:
Until now the use of mobile phone tracking in the fight against Covid-19 has been restricted to national governments, which are either monitoring data within their borders or in discussions with mobile operators and technology companies about doing so.
They include the US, India, Iran, Poland, Singapore, Israel, and South Korea. The British government is engaged in talks with BT, the owner of the UK mobile operator EE, about using phone location and usage data to determine the efficacy of isolation orders.
The concept of an international mobile tracing scheme would go further, enabling authorities to monitor movements and potentially track the spread of the disease across borders.
The risks of letting state and corporate powers overrun civil liberties is real in a moment of crisis, warned the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Cindy Cohn on Monday.
"We already see calls from companies seeking to cash in on this crisis for unchecked face surveillance, social media monitoring, and other efforts far beyond what medicine or epidemiology require," said Cohn.
While there is a need to keep safe and healthy for the good of the community, Cohn continued, that should not come at the expense of vigilance over freedom and civil rights.
"Right now, when real science is so often under attack, those of us who care about truth, health, and each other need to take seriously the things that science and medicine are telling us about how to keep this virus from spreading," wrote Cohn. "And we also need to be vigilant so that we come out the other side of this crisis with a society we want to live in and hand down to our kids. We can--and must--do both."
A viral video showing cell phone data collected by location accuracy company X-Mode from spring break partiers potentially spreading the coronavirus around the U.S. has brought up questions of digital privacy even as it shows convincingly the importance of staying home to defeat the disease.
"I don't know what scares me more, the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
--Roberto Rocha, CBC News
"First thing you should note is the importance of social distancing," tweeted Daily Dot journalist Mikael Thalen of the video. "The second is how much data your phone gives off."
The data in the video, which X-Mode fed into mapping platform Tectonix, shows people from one Florida beach over spring break departing the Sunshine State and spreading around the country, mostly to the Northeast.
The company also tracked people fleeing the outbreak from New York City.
"It's a glimpse into the power and scope of mobile tracking data, which the tech companies claim is anonymized to not reveal information about the owner of the device," wrote Newsweek's Jason Murdock.
According to Thalen's report on the data for the Daily Dot:
X-Mode states that the data used is "anonymized," meaning a cellphone's location is not linked to its user's identity. Tectonix took that raw data and honed in specifically on devices moving between 3 and 10 miles per hour in an attempt to pinpoint cellphone owners believed to be walking or traveling with bikes or scooters.
"I don't know what scares me more," tweeted CBC News reporter Roberto Rocha, "the spread of Florida beach revelers or that this data is being tracked."
In a report Wednesday on the outbreak, the Guardian revealed that the cell phone industry's international regulatory body the GSMMA is considering developing a global data-sharing system to track people from their devices in order to help contain the coronavirus outbreak.
Such a move would come with myriad privacy and security concerns and would be sure to generate intense backlash from civil liberty advocates around the world.
As the Guardian reported:
Until now the use of mobile phone tracking in the fight against Covid-19 has been restricted to national governments, which are either monitoring data within their borders or in discussions with mobile operators and technology companies about doing so.
They include the US, India, Iran, Poland, Singapore, Israel, and South Korea. The British government is engaged in talks with BT, the owner of the UK mobile operator EE, about using phone location and usage data to determine the efficacy of isolation orders.
The concept of an international mobile tracing scheme would go further, enabling authorities to monitor movements and potentially track the spread of the disease across borders.
The risks of letting state and corporate powers overrun civil liberties is real in a moment of crisis, warned the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Cindy Cohn on Monday.
"We already see calls from companies seeking to cash in on this crisis for unchecked face surveillance, social media monitoring, and other efforts far beyond what medicine or epidemiology require," said Cohn.
While there is a need to keep safe and healthy for the good of the community, Cohn continued, that should not come at the expense of vigilance over freedom and civil rights.
"Right now, when real science is so often under attack, those of us who care about truth, health, and each other need to take seriously the things that science and medicine are telling us about how to keep this virus from spreading," wrote Cohn. "And we also need to be vigilant so that we come out the other side of this crisis with a society we want to live in and hand down to our kids. We can--and must--do both."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy