Tracking a mobile phone

[lapislaz]

Would anyone happen to know when mobile phones are being tracked whether it is to a particular building or just to the nearest mast?
Thanks for any help.

[ACtheTROLL]

lap

what's occuring?
this isn't your first question on these lines if I remember

again ... "ordinary" people can't just do it -
in built up areas cell phones (cell! - the transmitters overlap and it all looks like a honeycomb)
so you are often "talking" to more than one transmitter - the strongest takes the call - but based on your direction it's passed to the next ... and next ... that's why you can use a phone in a car

the police can get far more accurate data .... and could easily work down to a building by triangulating the overlapping transmitters

once they have the id of the phone in a general area - they could then use a low power "pinger" to triangulate even closer (bit like the way they track birds and whales)

but it's a fair old job

large companies use services such as http://www.followus.co.uk/index.html

and I've seen it done by concerned parents

[lapislaz]

Hi AC,

Thanks again for the information. I am just curious exactly how closely someone could track a stationary phone as opposed to one that is moving.

I appreciate your patience anyway and apologize for asking so many questions. : (

[ACtheTROLL]

this place is about asking questions - and if it's just a question - no problem

but if it's a problem .... that's something else

gps is accurate to a foot or so - it's so accurate that the yanks introduced a margin of error for safety (bombs or snipers).

tracking a transmitter is easy - as long as the tracker is either moving or there is more than one - even if the transmitter is moving.

.... I was just more concerned that you might be interested for other reasons which might need different information.

[lapislaz]

As always, thanks for the info. I'm just curious about various things and very much value great mines of information, such as yourself!

Anyway, thanks again for your help.... you never know, I may be back again with even more questions. : )

[ACtheTROLL]

do call again - with flattery like that you can ask for anything ... except a loan ;)

it's just the last time I heard that question it was domestic violence

[lapislaz]

I won't ask for a loan but I may ask other questions about phones and digital communications etc. I am fascinated about how many ways people can be 'snooped upon'.
Just how BIG is Big Brother these days I wonder?
Thanks again : )