Smartphones Are Used To Stalk, Control Domestic Abuse Victims

[Coyote]

This is seriously creepy

We've looked a lot at privacy from the Big Brother standpoint: how the National Security Agency or corporate giants like Google track us online, say for political reasons or to make money from ads.

But there's another kind of privacy concern that is a lot more intimate. You could call it Little Brother, though it's really more like husbands and wives, lovers and exes who secretly watch their partners — from a distance. They are cyberstalking — using digital tools that are a lot cheaper than hiring a private detective.

NPR investigated these tools, also known as spyware, and spoke with domestic violence counselors and survivors around the country. We found that cyberstalking is now a standard part of domestic abuse in the U.S.

Smartphones Are Used To Stalk Control Domestic Abuse Victims All Tech Considered NPR

 

[Hossfly]

This is seriously creepy

We've looked a lot at privacy from the Big Brother standpoint: how the National Security Agency or corporate giants like Google track us online, say for political reasons or to make money from ads.

But there's another kind of privacy concern that is a lot more intimate. You could call it Little Brother, though it's really more like husbands and wives, lovers and exes who secretly watch their partners — from a distance. They are cyberstalking — using digital tools that are a lot cheaper than hiring a private detective.

NPR investigated these tools, also known as spyware, and spoke with domestic violence counselors and survivors around the country. We found that cyberstalking is now a standard part of domestic abuse in the U.S.

Smartphones Are Used To Stalk Control Domestic Abuse Victims All Tech Considered NPR

Saw a piece about this on FNC the other day. A security expert was advising people to remove their cellphone batteries and only put them when they wanted to make a call. Plus, cars today have a lot of spyware in them and removing a battery cable when not driving will prevent snoops from monitoring your location and activities.

 

[Coyote]

I was listening to this and getting seriously creeped out. Apparently they can put these apps in and you don't even know they are there. I don't have a smartphone and my car is too old to have that stuff I think...but...I'm going to remember what you are saying. It's frightening the degree to which you can be located and monitored.

 

[Hossfly]

I was listening to this and getting seriously creeped out. Apparently they can put these apps in and you don't even know they are there. I don't have a smartphone and my car is too old to have that stuff I think...but...I'm going to remember what you are saying. It's frightening the degree to which you can be located and monitored.

An example I experience periodically: I have my car serviced every 5000 miles at either a Toyota dealer in Charlotte or a dealer in Ft Worth, depending on my travels. If I go over the 5000 mile mark, I immediately receive an E-mail from both dealers, telling me maintenance is due and they quote the exact mileage on my odometer. How's that for Big Brother?

 

[Coyote]

I was listening to this and getting seriously creeped out. Apparently they can put these apps in and you don't even know they are there. I don't have a smartphone and my car is too old to have that stuff I think...but...I'm going to remember what you are saying. It's frightening the degree to which you can be located and monitored.

An example I experience periodically: I have my car serviced every 5000 miles at either a Toyota dealer in Charlotte or a dealer in Ft Worth, depending on my travels. If I go over the 5000 mile mark, I immediately receive an E-mail from both dealers, telling me maintenance is due and they quote the exact mileage on my odometer. How's that for Big Brother?

CREEPY!