FBI Spies on Student, Retrieves GPS Device

CBS NEWS.com ^ | October 8, 2010 6:17 PM | n/a

[Cindy]

PHOTO CAPTION: "Yasir Afifi said the FBI planted a GPS device on his car and later confiscated it when a friend posted this photo online. (Credit: khaledthegypsy/REDDIT)"

SNIPPET: "Yasir Afifi, a 20-year-old student and U.S.-born citizen found a GPS tracking device on his car. A friend posted pictures of the device, which resulted in the FBI coming by Afifi's Santa Clara, Calif., apartment to retrieve the surveillance equipment. It seems the FBI was tracking Afifi's movements..."

[iowamark]

[montag813]

Once he discovered the device, he should have slapped that sucker on the first garbage truck he saw.

No...taxi cab to drive the FBI nuts. A garbage truck's pattern is too regular and would be quickly revealed as obvious.

[mad_as_he$$]

Yup, I love the ones in the movies that are the size of a quarter. The FBI only wishes they had one that small.

[Chode]

my guess is it might be more than a simple beacon...

it might do audio (including cell phone monitoring) as well as video even depending where it's placed

[Bobalu]

The FBI is grossly overpaying for a piece of crap GPS+cellular data network transceiver. Our tax dollars
being squandered. The 9 D-cell alkaline case goes for nearly 400.00

426-4Q ST820TK Guardian $4,781.11
426-4Q ST820TK-SW Guardian with Software $5,259.70
426-4Q ST970TK ST970TK Paladin $5,264.48
426-4Q ST820TDK Guardian $5,355.42
426-4Q ST820TDK-SW Guardian with Software $5,834.01
426-4Q ST820TK-SW-CS Guardian with Software and CS $5,929.72
426-4Q ST820TDK-SW-CS Guardian with Software and CS $6,504.03

[Myrddin]

Batteries and antennas with sufficient capture area
for GPS put a lower bound on size. A flat “polapulse”
battery as supplied with early Polaroid film cartridges
are fairly compact. A ceramic disk antenna is
about 1.25 inches square and 1/8” thick. A common
surface mount GPS chip is about 1” square. The
collection of parts rarely ends up smaller than a deck
of cards. There is also the matter of space for a
transmitter to send the location to a monitoring
receiver. Frankly, something like a Motorola Droid
has nearly an optimal mix of parts.

[Jet Jaguar]

Yes

[iowan in texas]

Man, that thing looks like a pipe bomb. I am fairly certain I would call the bomb squad if I saw that on my car. Maybe the FBI can use it to find Obozo’s birth certificate.

[mad_as_he$$]

Yup, a droid tied into the vehicle power system and you can access the position for weeks or months. Way more concealable than the current Fed stuff. For many years now the chips have been very small, it is all the stuff needed to make them work and talk to the outside world that takes up space. I also like it in the movies when they are 100 miles from anywhere and the quarter size unit is sending data back to them. lol...

[Myrddin]

I’ve used some quarter size sensors running ANT protocol
and scavenging power from vibration of a piezo
electric device. The sensor sends brake shoe pressure
readings that are captured by a receiver that is
typically within 100 feet of the device. Nothing as
power hungry as a GPS receiver or cell phone trnaceiver.

[mad_as_he$$]

Cool!