Surge In Purchase Of Disposable Cell Phones
Hmm...
And when did this surge in the purchase of disposable cell phones kick off? Right after the New York Times blew the lid off the NSA's communication monitoring program by publishing classified information from an illegal leak, of course.
Anybody thinking the two things just might be realted? That maybe the terrorists, you know, watch the news and decided that they needed to quit using traditional cell phones? I think that's likely.
Thanks for setting our anti-terror methods back a few years, New York Times.
disposable cell phones, new york times, nsa, war on terror, politics
Federal agents have launched an investigation into a surge in the purchase of large quantities of disposable cell phones by individuals from the Middle East and Pakistan, ABC News has learned.
The phones — which do not require purchasers to sign a contract or have a credit card — have many legitimate uses, and are popular with people who have bad credit or for use as emergency phones tucked away in glove compartments or tackle boxes. But since they can be difficult or impossible to track, law enforcement officials say the phones are widely used by criminal gangs and terrorists. ... "There's very little audit trail assigned to this phone. One can walk in, purchase it in cash, you don't have to put down a credit card, buy any amount of minutes to it, and you don't, frankly, know who bought this," said Jack Cloonan, a former FBI official who is now an ABC News consultant.
Law enforcement officials say the phones were used to detonate the bombs terrorists used in the Madrid train attacks in March 2004. The FBI is closely monitoring the potentially dangerous development, which came to light following recent large-quantity purchases in California and Texas, officials confirmed.
In one New Year's Eve transaction at a Target store in Hemet, Calif., 150 disposable tracfones were purchased. Suspicious store employees notified police, who called in the FBI, law enforcement sources said. In an earlier incident, at a Wal-mart store in Midland, Texas, on December 18, six individuals attempted to buy about 60 of the phones until store clerks became suspicious and notified the police. A Wal-mart spokesperson confirmed the incident.
And when did this surge in the purchase of disposable cell phones kick off? Right after the New York Times blew the lid off the NSA's communication monitoring program by publishing classified information from an illegal leak, of course.
Anybody thinking the two things just might be realted? That maybe the terrorists, you know, watch the news and decided that they needed to quit using traditional cell phones? I think that's likely.
Thanks for setting our anti-terror methods back a few years, New York Times.
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