BINJ article provided “some of the most comprehensive information about modern CSS that the public has had access to in years.”
Over the past few months, BINJ ace Dan Atkinson has investigated “cell-phone surveillance tech that civil liberties watchdogs say invites concerning violations of constitutional protections.”
Our first feature on the controversial technology, “Stingrays, Simulators, and Silverados,” came in February, and was co-published with the Shoestring in Western Mass along with some hyper-local independent outlets in our network. If state politicians paid attention to that reporting and the cries of Fourth Amendment advocates at the time, they could have prevented the acquisition of a so-called stingray—or at least potentially put up some guardrails.
But since they didn’t act in time (kudos to Sen. Jamie Eldridge for at least noticing and trying to spread the word), the Massachusetts State Police went ahead and bought one of these devices, which concerned watchdogs say could “lead to suppression of free speech and questionable criminal cases, where prosecutors won’t reveal where they acquired information used to target suspects.”
In our followup, Dan reports in service of the question: “Is it too late for privacy advocates and lawmakers to put accountability measures in place?”
Though our first article didn’t cause enough of a stir to spur pols into action, the second, “Surreptitious Simulation,” has gained significant momentum, in part thanks to the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Unlike some more traditional newsrooms, BINJ recognizes the power of advocacy networks, and we tap into them to bolster our readership.
In addition to providing comment for the piece, EFF has also blogged about and shared our work with those tuned into its extensive platform for privacy advocates. From a post by Beryl Lipton and Cooper Quintin:
A proposal document from Jacobs Technology, provided to the Massachusetts State Police (MSP) and first spotted by the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism (BINJ), outlines elements of the company’s CSS services, which include discreet integration of the CSS system into a Chevrolet Silverado and lifetime technical support.
The proposal document from Jacobs provides some of the most comprehensive information about modern CSS that the public has had access to in years. It confirms that law enforcement has access to CSS capable of operating on 5G as well as older cellular standards.
You can read the EFF coverage here.
