The federal government is publicly acknowledging the existence of devices thought to be used by spies and criminals in the national’s capital to track individuals’ cellphones and intercept calls and messages.
The Department of Homeland Security, in a March 26 letter to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., obtained by the Washington Examiner said it identified unauthorized cell-site simulators in the Washington, D.C. metro area last year.
“The Department of Homeland Security’s National Protection and Programs Directorate has observed anomalous activity in the National Capital Region that appears to be consistent with International Mobile Subscriber Identity catchers,” DHS said in its letter to Wyden.
The FCC has regulated that only state, local and federal law enforcement and public safety officials use the International Mobile Subscriber Identity catchers, and the FBI must coordinate their use ahead of time.
“Use of IMSI catchers by malicious actors to track and monitor cellular users is unlawful and threatens the security of communications, resulting in safety, economic and privacy risks,” DHS told Wyden.
Wyden had previously questioned DHS about such devices in a series of questions sent to the agency in November.
DHS called the use of such devices a “real and growing risk.”
