Pubdate: Thu, 12 Apr 2001
Source: Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)
Copyright: 2001 The Sydney Morning Herald
Contact:  http://www.smh.com.au/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/441
Author: Linda Doherty

MOBILE NOW A CRIMINAL'S TOOL OF TRADE

Mobile phones have become the preferred tools of trade for drug dealers, 
resulting in a 275 per cent jump in robberies in the past three years, the 
theft of 2,000 phones a month and black-market dealings.

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research has revealed that thefts of 
mobile phones, most commonly from parked cars, doubled between October 1997 
and last December, with 83,598 stolen in that period.External linkRead the 
report

Most phones were stolen from vehicles (38 per cent). Home break-ins 
accounted for 11 per cent and 7 per cent were stolen from their owners.

The director of the bureau, Dr Don Weatherburn, said the most worrying 
trend was that thieves were resorting to violent crimes such as street 
muggings and robberies to obtain mobile phones. "Mobile phones are being 
used by drug traffickers as a means of avoiding detection by police," he said.

"They are so popular amongst offenders that they're committing robberies to 
obtain them.

"It's a very difficult communication form to intercept and, of course, you 
can always throw it away and steal another mobile phone and replace the SIM 
card."

The two major identifiers on many digital mobile phones are the SIM card 
(subscriber identity module) and the IMEI number (international mobile 
equipment identity) for the phone handset.

By disabling the IMEI number so the phone cannot be used, criminal activity 
would fall and the cost to the consumer would drop, Dr Weatherburn said.

"Unlike analogue phones and digital phones connected to CDMA networks, 
digital phones using Global System for Mobiles (GSM) technology can 
continue to be used even after they have been reported stolen," the 
bureau's report said.

This is because the SIM card that identifies the account holder can be 
replaced.

The chief executive officer of the Australian Mobile Telecommunications 
Association, Mr Ross Monaghan, said the call to switch off the IMEI was a 
"simplistic answer" and the industry preferred a lost-and-found database 
being developed that is now linked to 300 police stations.

The technology was also not available. "It hasn't been done successfully 
anywhere in the world," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens