Cell Phones Used To Thwart Speed Traps

(AP)  In a modern equivalent of flashing your headlights to warn other motorists of police speed traps, you can now warn fellow drivers with a cell phone or personal digital assistant about speed traps, red-light cameras and other threats to ticket-free driving.

And as you approach a known threat, you'll get an audio alert on your mobile device.

The developer of Trapster, Pete Tenereillo, said the system, which requires punching in a few keys such as "pound-1" to submit information to Trapster's database, should comply with laws banning talking on cell phones.

Tenereillo insisted he isn't encouraging motorists to break the law or drive dangerously, saying drivers who speed are bound to do so anyway.

And he said police officials he's talked to haven't complained about the service because it inevitably encourages drivers to slow down. (The International Association of Chiefs of Police did not respond to requests for comment.)

The free service can automatically detect location using mobile devices' GPS capabilities or tap their Wi-Fi and get location from a database run by Skyhook Wireless. (Skyhook sends trucks up and down streets to scan for home wireless routers or commercial hotspots and record the unique identifying code and location of each.)

Information about red-light cameras and where police tend to operate speed traps is kept in Trapster's database indefinitely. Information about active speed traps is kept for an hour, with the idea that officers may move on.

Users can choose the types of cameras or traps for which they want alerts.

To discourage pranksters and law-enforcement officials from flooding the system with bogus locations, users can rate others on the accuracy of their contributions, and those getting better ratings will carry more weight.

Trapster can be used with about 10 different wireless platforms, including Nokia Corp.'s smart phones, devices using Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Mobile and BlackBerry units from Research In Motion Ltd.

[lloydbest1]

"In a modern equivalent of flashing your headlights to warn other motorists of police speed traps,...."

Reminds me of a funny incident I was involved in as a teen (''tho it wasn''t particularly amusing at the time).
I was driving eastbound on New York''s recently opened RTE 17 near Binghamton when I spotted two patrol cars idling on the westbound shoulder. About half a mile further on I spotted the tripod and radar sender/reciever mounted on it. Back in the 60''s the police were allowed to mount these things remotely and even hide them if possible.
Being the conscientious citizen that I was, I flashed my lights in the universal "slow down, there''s a cop up ahead" signal. This was acknowledged and people driving west did slow down.
A few miles further on, however, I was pulled over by one of New York''s finest. I KNEW I wasn''t speeding but I had no idea what brought me to his attention. I found out quickly enough when he sidled up to my open window, leaned in and said, "Who do you think you are, Paul Revere??"

[rf35]

OK, I looked up Skyhook last night. I guess it''s not so bad. They use the info for something they call the Wireless Positioning system (WPS). Totally passive receiving of signals that are always present anyway. The article could have made this clearer.

[Latrocinor]

I''''ll just keep driving within the law...it''''s always worked for me.

Posted by Cas2dy at 11:02 AM : Apr 03, 2008
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Keeps the stress level down, gas mileage up, no watching for the cops and the type A personalities get there maybe a minute or two faster.

[rf35]

Dan9111,
The "paranoid conspiracy theorists" I refer to are those who seem to think the police are "out to get them" or something or that there is a secret alliance between the nation''s police forces and the insurance industry. My post is about the theft of my bandwidth and the admittedly lesser possibility of identity theft by some mook with a laptop trotting around to locations conveniently scouted by Skyhook and hacking in through people%u2019s wireless networks. Is this paranoia? It doesn%u2019t seem that way. Is there a conspiracy mentioned here? No. Twohares also made a good point.

[Syndicate]

You have a right to receive any radio transmission. Even cell phone conversations. Its just illegal to own that equipment.

[twohares]

Wow. I''m surprised they would admit to trying to tap into people''s home wireless networks. Technically, they are stealing and they admitted it! I mean, if I tapped into my neighbor''s cable, I''d get prosecuted for stealing cable. Since I''m paying for the bandwidth my cable company provides me with, wouldn''t it be the same as my neighbor stealing HBO?
The las hasn''t completely caught up with technology. So since it currently ISN''T illegal to piggyback onto my internet bandwidth, I keep tight security on my wireless network. I see open networks all the time in my neighborhood, and your laptop will just log in automatically.
Set up your network WEP2 encryption. It''s built-in to most newer router.
Remember, pedophiles like to log on to your wireless network and download their kiddy pics. When the cops track the illegal activity, guess who''s IP address they''ll have??? YOURS!

[Cas2dy]

I''ll just keep driving within the law...it''s always worked for me.

[dan9111]

I didn''''t realize how many paranoid conspiracy theorist types were on here.

What are they doing, logging my location so they can send someone to spy on my internet activities or just getting someone a free connection?

Posted by rf35

You somehow don''t see these two sentences as hilariously contradictory? If an action is wrong, then it is wrong. A quest to define something as "paranoid", and the exact same thing as disconcerting is kind of lame thinking.

[extremophil]

I''ll just stick to my trusty little radar detector.

[rf35]

Wow! I didn''t realize how many paranoid conspiracy theorist types were on here. Anyway, some cops have quotas, some don%u2019t. I%u2019ve lived in locations with both. My concern with this article is Skyhook. What the f*ck? Driving around looking for my wireless router? If I see one of these trucks (hopefully they are marked) I%u2019ll be sure to follow it back to its base office and redefine the term "hot-spot" for them. Is this even legal? People worry about invasion of privacy and here%u2019s a company that appears to be in the business of invading privacy. What are they doing, logging my location so they can send someone to spy on my internet activities or just getting someone a free connection? Let %u2018em slow someone else%u2019s connection down and stay away from my house!