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The negative effects of cell phones
Security risk associated with mobile devices
The negative effects of cell phones
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Is Cell Phone Communication Secure? According to a 2010 survey by the CDC (Center For Disease Control) 26.6% of US households use only cell phones at home (Blumberg). With such a large amount of people depending on cellular for communications it is important to understand the security risks they face. Cell phone communication is not completely secure but the risk depends on a variety of variables, user habits, interception points, and user vigilance. Legally no one is supposed to listen to cell phone calls but it does happen. In April of 1994 the Federal Communications Commission “ruled no radio scanners may be manufactured or imported into the U.S. that can pick up frequencies used by cellular telephones, or that can be readily altered to receive such frequencies. (47 CFR Part 15.37(f))(Fact Sheet). “Another federal law, the Counterfeit Access Device Law, was amended to make it illegal to use a radio scanner "knowingly and with the intent to defraud" to eavesdrop on wire or electronic communication. (18 USC 1029) Penalties for the intentional interception of cordless and cellular telephone calls range from fines to imprisonment depending on the circumstances. (18 USC 2511, 2701)” (Fact Sheet). User Security Two of the most common avoidable breaches to secure calling have to do with the ease of use and portability of cell phones. As people have become more comfortable with holding conversations in public many people talk on the cell phone as if they are alone with no one able to hear. They may not be thinking about security when they talk to someone asking for verification by using their Social Security number, birth date, or other personal items. Another common issue is pocket calling. An article in In... ... middle of paper ... ...ion (EFF). “What Can I Do To Protect Myself?”. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Surveillance Self-Defence. Web. 29 October 2011 “Fact Sheet 2: Wireless Communications: Voice and Data Privacy.” Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Revised August 2011. Web. 29 August 2011. Grimes, Roger A. “Unintended cell phone calls put privacy at risk.” Info-world. 15 June 20101. Web. 29 October 2011. Valentino, Vishnu. “Vodafone Hacked – Root Password published” Vishnu Valentino: Blog. Web. 29 August 2011. Walker, Michael. “On the Security of 3GPP Networks.” International Association for Cryptologic Research. Web. 29 October 2011. Walter, Vic and Krista Kjellman. “Can You Hear Me Now?” ABC News Investigative. 5 Dec 2006. Web. 29 October 2011. Wikipedia. Zetter, Kim. ”Hacker Spoofs Cell Phone Tower to Intercept Calls.” Wired. 31 July 2010. Web. 29 October 2011.
When one looks around in public it is almost impossible not to see someone who is talking, texting, or playing a game on a cell phone. When someone sends a text, the phone company saves it in a data bank where it sits waiting to be u...
Amy Gahran, a media consultant exploring communication in the technology era, writes about how cell phones are significant. She feels that cell phones have changed our lives by providing “…vital services and human connections…offer new hope, even through simple broadcast text messages” (Gahran). Gahran is insisting that cell phones allow us to learn news quickly, connect with safety, and can even fight crime through video recordings (Gahran). In addition, she feels that the overall benefits of owning a cell phone outweigh any negatives. This somewhat challenges the ideas presented by Rosen because it points out more benefits of cell phones. In “Our Cell Phones, Ourselves” Rosen mentions that although cell phones indeed connect us with safety, they can often lead to a sense of paranoia. To expand, she writes that parents who give children a cell phone for security purposes, develop a paranoid sense of their community and lose trust in “social institutions” (Rosen). In making this comment, Rosen argues that although cell phones may be beneficial, they can change the way we view our world. Without a cell phone, many individuals feel vulnerable, as if their phone protects them from all possible dangers that they may encounter. In fact, a Rutgers University professor challenged his students to power off their phones for 48 hours and report back with their experience (Rosen). Many felt almost lost without it and one young women described the feeling “…like I was going to get raped if I didn’t have my cell phone in my hand” (Rosen). In reality, having a cell phone will not save a person’s life in all situations. Although many, including Gahran, feel a phone is a vital tool, it has changed how we feel about the world around us and how vulnerable we feel without a phone in
As we progress deeper into the digital era, we rely more and more on our electronic devices. Over the last decade, almost everyone who lives in a developed nation owns a cellphone and they are becoming an integral part of our life.
In a world that is rapidly becoming faster paced, finding various means to keep up with the changing environment is a must. Cell phones are one of the most practical inventions of time that make this possible. However, the subtle effect they have on our culture today, their invasion of our privacy, and the possible health risks they may cause are reasons to reassess the value of this intriguing device. While cell phones may be valuable, they are also potentially harmful.
Ring! Ring! Hello. Every second billions of cell phones calls occur across the globe. Cell phones have made it so that humans can communicate with each other at ease. Since the telephone’s invention in 1876, it has made human communication easier and added to the convenience of life. Being able to talk to a person that is hundreds, or even thousands of miles away has enhanced our forms of communication. However, when the invention of the first telephone came about, it was only for the elite and required enormous and heavy equipment in order for it to be operable, thus many did not own one. Telephones became major in the 1900s; and eventually a new innovation, the cellular phone, came about in 1973, but still a handful of people did not rely on them, or care for them. The first cell phone was of considerable size and was not available for everyone until around 1992. There are close to 6.8 billion cell phone subscriptions currently and most phones are considered smart phones, cell phones that integrate email, internet, and apps on a touch screen handheld device. The volume of subscriptions of phones are rapidly growing. With the
Cellular phones are a phenomenon that has engulfed people in the nineties. They have become a common occurrence whether you are waiting in line at the super market or in a movie theatre. One professor at Murray State University said, “Many students are carrying them, I had a student get a call in the middle of a test last semester.” Although many people have accepted the thought of carrying a telephone wherever they go, others have not taken the onslaught of cell phones quite so easily. Cell phones have become part of everyday life, and with the dramatic changes that have been made, there is no sign of their existence diminishing. Today, cellular service is available in all 306 Metropolitan Statistical Areas across the country and all of the 428 Rural Service Areas.
Ever since day one, people have been developing and creating all sorts of new methods and machines to help better everyday life in one way or another. Who can forget the invention of the ever-wondrous telephone? And we can’t forget how innovative and life-changing computers have been. However, while all machines have their positive uses, there can also be many negatives depending on how one uses said machines, wiretapping in on phone conversations, using spyware to quietly survey every keystroke and click one makes, and many other methods of unwanted snooping have arisen. As a result, laws have been made to make sure these negative uses are not taken advantage of by anyone. But because of how often technology changes, how can it be known that the laws made so long ago can still uphold proper justice? With the laws that are in place now, it’s a constant struggle to balance security with privacy. Privacy laws should be revised completely in order to create a better happy medium between security and privacy. A common misconception of most is that a happy medium of privacy and security is impossible to achieve. However, as well-said by Daniel Solove, “Protecting privacy doesn’t need to mean scuttling a security measure. Most people concerned about the privacy implications of government surveillance aren’t arguing for no[sic] surveillance and absolute privacy. They’d be fine giving up some privacy as long as appropriate controls, limitations, oversight and accountability mechanisms were in place.”(“5 Myths about Privacy”)
According to Rosen, the main reason why people acquire a cell phone is because of security. After the tragic event that occurred on September 11, 2001 in the United States cell phones started to play an important role in our lives. Rosen states that after this e...
Cell phones otherwise known as smart phones by today’s standards are an immense help to most Americans in many way. We use our cell phones daily for communication with friends and family through texting and phone calls, scheduling appointment, or social media. However the convenience of smart phones is being abused daily in several ways that can lead to severe impacts with the distractions they pose.
Many people in today’s society rely on technology to help us with our daily lives and help us stay connected to family, friends, and other people. The advancements in today’s cell phone technology is very complex and made to be efficient for their owners, allowing them to surf the net and IM message people instantly. Cellphones in particular have developed very fast in the past 15 years. From my childhood, cell phones have evolved from the old school Nokia bricks that allowed texts, calls, and simple graphic games, to todays I-Phones that have higher computable capabilities than some computers. In the United States alone, there is an estimated population of around 297 million people, and 197 million people are subscribed to cell phone companies (Starr). With so many people in today’s society with so much power and opportunity in the palm of their hands, we shouldn’t forget that “With great power comes great responsibility” –Voltaire.
Millions of people adore their cell phones so much that they spend more time texting, calling, playing games, listening to music, and going on social media than they do sleeping. Before the late 19th century, no one had even heard of what a telephone was. Now, over 90% of Americans own a digital cell phone and use it daily. All over the world, cell phones are growing rapidly in popularity due to the vast improvements but concerns such as deadly distractions also increase.
With text messaging, email, and social media, all of which are already fairly popular, becoming more popular by the day, digital privacy is becoming a vital issue. This is why the problem between Apple and the FBI is an important issue, and one that calls for attention. In the words of Middleton “The first thing many users do in the morning is check their BlackBerry, and the device remains with them throughout the day, until they go to bed.” The thing is, this is not a behavior limited to BlackBerry users. Many people who have cellphones, smartphones in particular, are practically attached to them at the hip. As a result of this level of dependence, many people have a veritable boatload of information on their cellphones. Credit card numbers, important emails, all of their contacts, to name but a few. Some people have their entire lives stored on their phones. If it is a phone used regularly for business, it may have most to all of the business’ pertinent information stored on one device. This is why cell phone security, and being able to trust that the information on your phone is being kept safe, is so important
LeRoux, Yves. "Privacy concerns in the digital world." 03 Oct 2013. Computer Weekly. 24 April 2014 .
Since the invention of the cell phones, in 1973, it has quickly become the most popular device used especially today during the twenty-first century. Due to its hands-free-easy-to-use design, the amount of people that own a cell phone is rapidly increasing. The useful text messaging feature has proved to be extremely useful in current times. Along with these helpful features, the cell phone is easily accessible and more portable. The majority of phone companies offer a 3G or 4G data plan, meaning internet access can be found on your phone almost anywhere, at any time. In addition to its easy portability, the cell phone is a very useful and helpful device, allowing one to stay connected to the outer world. “With a smartphone, you can connect to the Web from virtually anywhere. You ...
Consider the impact of digital technologies on your daily life. The cell phone is one of many digital devices that have drastically changed people’s lives in a level of connectivity and productivity. You probably use your phone throughout the day to communicate with friends and business associates, look up information on the Web, check your friends’ Facebook statuses, snap photos and post them online, send e-mails, plan your evening, play games, watch movies, and listen to music.