Bluetooth gives Spies a Window into your Life

[Hum]

Worried about your civil liberties and privacy? Then it may come as a shock to discover that you have unwittingly been allowing your phone to signal your every move.

Bluetooth, a wireless link built into many cellphones, makes our movements trackable by anyone equipped with a PC and an appropriate receiver.

Vassilis Kostakos at the University of Bath in the UK placed four Bluetooth receivers in the city's centre. Over four months, his team tracked 10,000 Bluetooth phones and was able to "capture and analyse people's encounters" in pubs, streets and shops.

Bluetooth is now more of a privacy threat than the more frequently publicised RFID chips, Kostakos says. "If people are worried, they should turn off the Bluetooth function on their mobile phones."

source

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

I turned mine off!

[naap51stang]

and if you keep your bluetooth set correctly, not broadcasting, it isn't a threat

[Jack 0Neill]

This was discussed years ago. Just only allow one device and not to broadcast. Dur.

[ThePitt]

Good enough when you are on the 10m range! :p

[strekship]

This is news? Bluetooth only has a range of what, 30ft? Besides, who walkes around with it constantly broadcasting?

[+InsaneNutter MVC]

Who walkes around with it constantly broadcasting?

Loads of people, do a search in a public place.. you will find loads of devices.

[Beastage]

Like most neowinians blues is turned off when I have no need of it but I assume most users leave their on after they used it once then wonder why their batteries die.

More people should buy the iphone since it has no data transfer via bluetooth ;)

[testman]

Does this really matter? How the hell can you track someone via bluetooth? All you get is a list of devices, you don't know where they are and this has been known for years already.

Non news.

[Nick Sheldon]

Like most neowinians blues is turned off when I have no need of it but I assume most users leave their on after they used it once then wonder why their batteries die.

More people should buy the iphone since it has no data transfer via bluetooth ;)

You were doing really well until your last sentence.

LOL

Pay over the odds for your phone, and get LESS functions for your money.

Great advertisement that ar kid.

[Huleboeren]

Does this really matter? How the hell can you track someone via bluetooth? All you get is a list of devices, you don't know where they are and this has been known for years already.

Non news.

Havent you seen 24?

They use the antennas to triangulate the signal :p

duhhh :rofl:

[Nashy]

Un-Needed battery drain. Stays off until required.

[+InsaneNutter MVC]

More people should buy the iphone since it has no data transfer via bluetooth ;)

LOL really? wow I'm glad I got my N95, it was a lot cheaper at the time and does a lot more! ;)

[Scirwode]

Loads of people, do a search in a public place.. you will find loads of devices.

I can relate to this, as when my Bluetooth was on, I got many file transfer requests for an unknown file, which is mostly located from Nokia phones. However, since I'm using a Sony Ericsson, I doubt that I might get anything from it!

And before anyone says I'm an idiot for leaving my Bluetooth on, I'm using Bluetooth headsets to listen to my music :p !

Scirwode

[williamhook]

I've not even ever turned Bluetooth on on my phone. Too scared that Jack Bauer will trace me from America. :(

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

We're back here again? Wasn't this raised over 5 years ago? And since then blutooth security and defaults have reacted to combat this.

Sheesh!

[BoyScoutFive]

I've not even ever turned Bluetooth on on my phone. Too scared that Jack Bauer will trace me from America. :(

I don't know what you did to get Jack Bauer to start tracking you, but better cover up that IR port too -- just to be safe. :shiftyninja:

[macf13nd]

Like most neowinians blues is turned off when I have no need of it but I assume most users leave their on after they used it once then wonder why their batteries die.

More people should buy the iphone since it has no data transfer via bluetooth ;)

how can no-one appreciate that this post is ironic?

[azz0r_wugg]

I have an N95, so as you can imagine, bluetooth is off unless required lol

Anywho, so some loser sat there and stored the names of people walking past...Lotsa "im sexy and blondes" on that list I bet.

[darkz]

i heard wrapping ur phone in tinfoil makes it harder to trace :shiftyninja:

[bbfc_uk]

I used to sit in lecutres at Uni when I was bored (which was most of the time) seeing how many people had their bluetooth on and laugh at their silly names.

My mate did it in a bar and sent random photo (tasteful photos!) requests to people - and most accepted them!

[+DonC Subscriber²]

I leave bluetooth switched on so that my fellow lab members can tell if i'm in.

Thing is, I chose to leave Bluetooth on whereas I don't choose to be trackable via the RFID tags in my shopping bag.

[dysmatik]

:|

[BlackTigerAP]

:)

I can see stupid people! :devil:

[Justin-]

Loads of people, do a search in a public place.. you will find loads of devices.

I was in Wal-Mart and ###### Sporting Goods the other day and just did a search of discoverable devices (as I was trying to send a file to a friend over BT and also trying to send a picture to a printer in Wal-Mart) and there were loads of devices just around me.

My phone's never discoverable, but I keep it on to use BitPim and send files to people.

Also, how can you really say that a phone's name is trackable to a person? Most people never change their bluetooth device name. It's stupid to think you can track someone with a device name. lol