LAW OFFICERS SEEK OK TO TAP CELL PHONE CALLS

Privacy Groups Vow To Fight FCC Proposal

WASHINGTON -- Police and the FBI could find out the location of any
person talking on a cellular phone -- as long as a court approves --
under a proposal the government is expected to make today.

With some 66 million cellular phone customers, law enforcement
officials want the authority to tap cell phones to track down drug
dealers, terrorists and kidnappers. But some groups worry such a
practice could violate privacy.

The Federal Communications Commission is expected to propose giving
the FBI and other law enforcement officers this and other additional
wiretapping capabilities to keep pace with technology.

The proposal is part of a larger plan to implement a 1994 law that
requires companies to make digital wiretapping technology available to
law enforcers. The location proposal is based on a plan from the
telecommunications industry.

"We think this is a positive step forward," said Stephen Colgate, the
Justice Department's assistant attorney general for administration.
"In many kidnapping cases, it would have been very helpful to have
location information."

But James Dempsey, counsel to the Center for Democracy and Technology,
a privacy group, said: "We're prepared to fight this one every step of
the way."

With a court order, police already can legally listen in to cellular
phone conversations, and, in some instances, they can get information
on the caller's location.

But not every company has the technical ability to provide a caller's
location. This proposal, if adopted, would set up a nationwide
requirement for companies to follow.

The legal standard for obtaining location information is lower than
the standard for a wiretap order in which police must show a judge
there is probable cause of criminal activity.

Under the proposal, police would have to get a court order to obtain a
cell phone's location, but would only need to show it is relevant to
an investigation. Privacy groups say that means the government could
easily track the movements not only of a suspect, but also of the
suspect's associates, friends or relatives.

It would give police the ability to obtain the cellular phone user's
location at the beginning and end of a wiretapped call, according to
industry sources familiar with the plan. They spoke on condition of
anonymity.

The proposal would provide police with that information based on the
cellular tower, or "cell" site, where a call originated and ended.
That would provide information on the caller's location within several
city blocks in an urban area to hundreds of square miles in a rural
area.

The FBI had been seeking more exact location information.

The proposal would give police about the same level of location
information they get when tapping a regular phone, said Thomas
Wheeler, president of the Cellular Telecommunications Industry
Association.

The FCC also is expected to tentatively conclude that companies must
give police additional capabilities -- beyond minimum technical
standards already proposed by the industry -- so their ability to
conduct wiretaps won't be thwarted.

It's unclear which additional capabilities will be advanced by the
FCC, the sources said.

The FBI, for instance, has asked for the ability to listen in on the
conversations of all parties to a conference call, even if some are
put on hold and are no longer talking to the target of the legal wiretap.

Privacy groups and the telephone industry contend the additional
capabilities sought by the FBI overstep the 1994 law and are an
attempt to broaden wiretapping powers. The FBI disagrees, saying they
merely preserve the ability to conduct legal wiretaps in a world of
constantly changing technology.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry