WHY YOU SHOULDN’T SEND YOUR PHONE DURING PROTESTS
In February this year I did an educational live demo on how IMSI catchers are used to get IMSI numbers of phones in a geographical area using the Hackrf. This is an aspect of radio Pentesting aimed at surveillance in most cases.
I will like to suggest for protesters to leave their phones at home for privacy and security reasons. I believe at least one security agency in Nigeria has an IMSI catcher. Your phone cells you out when it on by broadcasting signals in orchestra. There can be association tracking too; even if an individual is not directly targeted, their association with other protesters can be tracked, potentially leading to broader surveillance of activist networks.
These security firms or Authorities can use data from IMSI catchers to identify and monitor individuals involved in protests. This can lead to subsequent harassment, arrest, or legal action. Sensitive information stored on phones, such as contacts, messages, and emails, can be exposed if intercepted by IMSI catchers. That’s why in the developed countries protesters are picked after the event.
If you want to carry your phone along, just turn it off. That’s the best way to prevent this. Share this.
Someone may need this🫡🤍