Violent Flash Mobs organized through social media

[rhody]

This is interesting on many levels, if the violence continues to escalate, and flash mob behavior continues to spread from distressed region/country to distressed region/country for whatever reason, there will be a triggering event that will cause the communications industry in cooperation with state and federal governments to action. When they finally have had enough, they will "pull the plug" on cell phone and internet service, at least for the short term until the flash mob behavior is brought under control. Once down this track, we are on a very slippery slope. I liken removing the ability to communicate as removing the mobsters carrying gas cans to a bonfire.

Who knows, maybe HAM radio operators will have a new place in society in the near future to provide emergency communication services in the event something like this happens. I listened to a talk radio host talk about how we are in a pre-revolutionary period today. I was shocked and taken aback by the comments, but seeing these events play themselves out, am beginning to wonder myself. This talk show host is not a far left or far right loon and comments honestly as he sees things. He is good at predicting the future and is usually weeks to months ahead of others in predicting political actions in our state. That is why I continue to listen.

Rhody...

 

[drankin]

Even without firepower, perhaps society just needs more of the elders' sense of community and courage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ng0QNvHOh-g

Fewer thieves would risk it if they expected the local passerby to be as brave and determined as this old lady to stop them.

I agree! I love seeing an old lady beating away rioters! LOL

 

[CAC1001]

This is interesting on many levels, if the violence continues to escalate, and flash mob behavior continues to spread from distressed region/country to distressed region/country for whatever reason, there will be a triggering event that will cause the communications industry in cooperation with state and federal governments to action. When they finally have had enough, they will "pull the plug" on cell phone and internet service, at least for the short term until the flash mob behavior is brought under control. Once down this track, we are on a very slippery slope. I liken removing the ability to communicate as removing the mobsters carrying gas cans to a bonfire.

I highly doubt they would pull cellphone and Internet service all over flash mobs, would have to be some major flash mobs occurring, and even then, it is questionable. Plus you'd completely hamstring businesses and the overall economy by doing such a thing, and it would make people crazy, as they are too used to the Internet now.

 

[Evo]

I think it's clever that undercover cops have started getting themselves "friended" and been able to stop riots from happening thanks to them getting the "tweet".

 

[rhody]

I think it's clever that undercover cops have started getting themselves "friended" and been able to stop riots from happening thanks to them getting the "tweet".

Yeah, that is clever Evo. The news is reporting that a lot of flash organizing behavior is done using Blackberry's. They texts apparently can't be traced.

Rhody...

P.S. This is an interesting aside. A young lady was caring for someone away from home and in a city/residence she was not familiar with. There was a medical emergency, no land line available, and her cell call to emergency services was frustrated because she could not give an exact address. Had they had a land phone line, the EMT's would have shown the address immediately. Something to think about, although an unusual case.

 

[Astronuc]

I think it's clever that undercover cops have started getting themselves "friended" and been able to stop riots from happening thanks to them getting the "tweet".

I would imagine that hot jobs in the near term are private eye, security guard, and bounty hunter - and using the internet and social media to catch miscreants and n'er-do-well folk.

 

[FeDeX_LaTeX]

Logged on to my friend's Facebook account (he gave me the password to look at 'statuses'); here are some of the messages people posted (the bad-looking ones).

"so bored. mite go for some looting tomoz lol"
"why don't the rioters set schools on fire?"
"Camden's so quiet it's wierd. going to go down there tomorrow, see if I can steal some stuff xD"
"I Need Some New Crep, Let's Break Into Footlocker"
"is it kicking off in holloway ? Where is it kicking off? someone organise something"
"I need to get to these Riots."
"Getting Livly In Camden..looks fun LOL"
"Thinkin of merkin greggs..whos got a motive for me and my dawgyss"
"i would love to **** up some police."
"Ok is their rioting in Camden? anyone going?"
"whos on protest tomorrow ?"
"MANDEM COME KENTISH. LIIIVE."
"the riot's at Camden yh?"

Just a sample of some of what people have posted...

 

[drankin]

Logged on to my friend's Facebook account (he gave me the password to look at 'statuses'); here are some of the messages people posted (the bad-looking ones).

"so bored. mite go for some looting tomoz lol"
"why don't the rioters set schools on fire?"
"Camden's so quiet it's wierd. going to go down there tomorrow, see if I can steal some stuff xD"
"I Need Some New Crep, Let's Break Into Footlocker"
"is it kicking off in holloway ? Where is it kicking off? someone organise something"
"I need to get to these Riots."
"Getting Livly In Camden..looks fun LOL"
"Thinkin of merkin greggs..whos got a motive for me and my dawgyss"
"i would love to **** up some police."
"Ok is their rioting in Camden? anyone going?"
"whos on protest tomorrow ?"
"MANDEM COME KENTISH. LIIIVE."
"the riot's at Camden yh?"

Just a sample of some of what people have posted...

Wow, like it's a local carnival. "so bored. mite go for some looting tomoz lol".

 

[FeDeX_LaTeX]

That being said the majority of the people posting statuses are against looting, I just put these together to give people a sample of what some of the 'organisation' looks like. Not to be mis-interpreted as a majority

 

[rhody]

That being said the majority of the people posting statuses are against looting, I just put these together to give people a sample of what some of the 'organisation' looks like. Not to be mis-interpreted as a majority

Fedex,

Do these people have enough brain cells to realize that law enforcement can use them to connect the dots ? Sometimes a big lie to look bad a.. could come back to bite them in a big way.

Rhody...

 

[skippy1729]

I can hardly wait until some of our less civilized political movements latch onto this behavior.

I keep hoping that a definitive causal link can be found between wireless traffic and Colony Collapse Disorder. The world would be a better place without cell phones. I know I must sound like a knuckle dragging reactionary but I was there, BCP (before cell phones), and it was a better place.

Skippy

 

[FeDeX_LaTeX]

Some of the people who said these things I thought knew better than to join in the chaos; a bit shocked that some of my 'friends' are choosing to contribute to the injuring of policemen, burning of shops, and mugging of people.

 

[drankin]

Some of the people who said these things I thought knew better than to join in the chaos; a bit shocked that some of my 'friends' are choosing to contribute to the injuring of policemen, burning of shops, and mugging of people.

Might have to take a second look at who your 'friends' are my friend.

 

[WhoWee]

This is interesting on many levels, if the violence continues to escalate, and flash mob behavior continues to spread from distressed region/country to distressed region/country for whatever reason, there will be a triggering event that will cause the communications industry in cooperation with state and federal governments to action. When they finally have had enough, they will "pull the plug" on cell phone and internet service, at least for the short term until the flash mob behavior is brought under control. Once down this track, we are on a very slippery slope. I liken removing the ability to communicate as removing the mobsters carrying gas cans to a bonfire.

The police could always send a message of their own - maybe tell everyone to meet at a large parking lot > where they'll all be arrested.

 

[rhody]

The police could always send a message of their own - maybe tell everyone to meet at a large parking lot > where they'll all be arrested.

Hehe, or better yet, flash all the trouble makers cell's so they no longer can communicate with a warning to knock it off or go to jail and face hefty fines before the phones go dead. That would get their attention for sure.

Rhody...

 

[WhoWee]

Does anyone know if cell phone privileges can be stripped (for a set time or indefinitely) the way a land line can - if too many abusive calls are documented?

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Just got a fb status report from a friend that some rioting has begun in Birkenhead and Liverpool.

 

[Evo]

Does anyone know if cell phone privileges can be stripped (for a set time or indefinitely) the way a land line can - if too many abusive calls are documented?

Physically, yes, but it runs into legal issues.

 

[WhoWee]

Physically, yes, but it runs into legal issues.

Someone posted early in the thread about a problem in Cleveland, OH. while I'm not sure about the rest of the country, but some of the larger counties in OH have provided thousands of cell phones to welfare recipients. A lot of the phones were provided for parents to communicate with kids. At a minimum, this group should face consequences of losing phones if involved in criminal activities.

 

[Tosh5457]

Wow, like it's a local carnival. "so bored. mite go for some looting tomoz lol".

Lol that's funny. It's total anarchy I guess.

 

[Evo]

Someone posted early in the thread about a problem in Cleveland, OH. while I'm not sure about the rest of the country, but some of the larger counties in OH have provided thousands of cell phones to welfare recipients. A lot of the phones were provided for parents to communicate with kids. At a minimum, this group should face consequences of losing phones if involved in criminal activities.

Thing is criminals currently buy those disposable "pay as you go" phones. You can pay cash for them and they're untraceable. People have been trying to pass laws to require registration, but there is push back against it. Just read about it this morning.

 

[turbo]

That's what I have Evo, though not with criminal intent. Go to WalMart and buy a TrakFone with a minutes card, load the minutes and wait for the phone to update with a phone number. Done. I don't use a phone that much, but it's nice to have in my pocket for emergencies when I'm away from home.

 

[WhoWee]

Thing is criminals currently buy those disposable "pay as you go" phones. You can pay cash for them and they're untraceable. People have been trying to pass laws to require registration, but there is push back against it. Just read about it this morning.

Hard to imagine how to control that - the phones in OH I referred to are paid for with tax dollars - there should be ZERO tolerance on those devices - IMO.

 

[Evo]

Hard to imagine how to control that - the phones in OH I referred to are paid for with tax dollars - there should be ZERO tolerance on those devices - IMO.

I agree, but I wonder if they even kept track of them? I wouldn't be surprised if half of those people either sold them or had them stolen.

 

[WhoWee]

I agree, but I wonder if they even kept track of them? I wouldn't be surprised if half of those people either sold them or had them stolen.

I just thought of something else - we have tracking on our phones. I wonder if the police could request the carriers to activate tracking on all enabled devices - take a snapshot in time?

 

[Astronuc]

I just thought of something else - we have tracking on our phones. I wonder if the police could request the carriers to activate tracking on all enabled devices - take a snapshot in time?

Many or most phones have GPS, or they are tracked by cellphone, so the phone's location can be determined. I'm not sure about timestamps, origin and desitination, but it's possible those exist in a database. Whomever activated (paid the minutes/plan) is likely recorded. However, if those phones are stolen and used, then it becomes problematic.

 

[turbo]

I just thought of something else - we have tracking on our phones. I wonder if the police could request the carriers to activate tracking on all enabled devices - take a snapshot in time?

If you buy a pay-as-you-go cheapie and don't give your personal information to the vendor, the cops wouldn't have a clue whose location they just got that way.

I don't know if TracFone cheapies have GPS, or if that feature is enabled. If not, then all the cops would get is an anonymous phone on a nearby tower.

 

[Evo]

I just thought of something else - we have tracking on our phones. I wonder if the police could request the carriers to activate tracking on all enabled devices - take a snapshot in time?

Many or most phones have GPS, or they are tracked by cellphone, so the phone's location can be determined. I'm not sure about timestamps, origin and desitination, but it's possible those exist in a database. Whomever activated (paid the minutes/plan) is likely recorded. However, if those phones are stolen and used, then it becomes problematic.

It only works if the cellphone holder manually activates GPS tracking on their phone. I have the GPS on my phone deactivated. So, GPS tracking only works that way on tv.

On "pay as you go" phones there is no way to know who bought the phone if they use cash, or a stolen credit card or check. Activation requires no verification.

 

[WhoWee]

If you buy a pay-as-you-go cheapie and don't give your personal information to the vendor, the cops wouldn't have a clue whose location they just got that way.

I don't know if TracFone cheapies have GPS, or if that feature is enabled. If not, then all the cops would get is an anonymous phone on a nearby tower.

When we first allowed the kids to have phones I went pre-paid - told them they were training wheels - see if they could control their minutes. We tried several types and a few did require us to register. I think you're correct about tracfone though.

 

[Evo]

When we first allowed the kids to have phones I went pre-paid - told them they were training wheels - see if they could control their minutes. We tried several types and a few did require us to register. I think you're correct about tracfone though.

I bought a "pay as you go" from T-Mobile years ago, I had to go online and "register" and I used bogus information, they had no idea, they don't verify the information, they don't require a human checking a driver's license.

 

[Newai]

Even if they started requiring checks on these phones, there have always been alternatives. I can go right around the corner and get someone's stolen phone.

That's why I liked my old cell phone. I enabled an option to type in a four digit number to unlock it, which has to be done whenever I flip it open or turn it on. I think I'll check my current one to see if it has that feature.

 

[rootX]

England riots: Government mulls social media controls

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14493497

It's bit funny how social media was embraced during the Iran unrest.

 

[rhody]

I highly doubt they would pull cellphone and Internet service all over flash mobs, would have to be some major flash mobs occurring, and even then, it is questionable. Plus you'd completely hamstring businesses and the overall economy by doing such a thing, and it would make people crazy, as they are too used to the Internet now.

England riots: Government mulls social media controls

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14493497

It's bit funny how social media was embraced during the Iran unrest.

CAC,

Doubt no more... rootX beat me to this. I was just about to post it. The British Prime Minister, David Carmeron has publically repeatedly displayed his disgust with the situation, no surprise that he is considering this option.

Rhody...

Oh yeah, for some of these idiots who who GPS tracking enabled on their phones, can you say DUH... loud enough...

 

[Jack21222]

Looks like San Francisco is putting some of this to the test:

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2011/08/201181221139693608.html

A rail transit provider in the United States disabled mobile phone services to prevent a planned protest on Thursday, attracting criticism and unflattering comparisons to crackdowns on dissent in the Middle East.

Demonstrators in northern California's Bay Area had planned a protest to condemn the shooting death of Charles Hill, who was killed on July 3 after Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police officers responded to complaints about a drunk man at a station in the city of San Francisco.

On Thursday, BART police Lieutenant Andy Alkire told the local Bay City News agency that while it was unusual to block mobile services, it was "a great tool to utilise for this specific purpose".

Linton Johnson, BART's spokesman, told the local KTVU television channel that BART "didn’t try to shut down the protest. They simply turned off the cell service so it couldn't become viral.

 

[DoggerDan]

Tricky question. The right to assemble and associate freely is something that the ACLU will defend all the way to the SC, especially since banning flash mobs carries an assumption of guilt - that the mob will be violent, and there is prior intent of committing violence. As I said, tricky.

I believe the right as explained in the Constitution (1st Amendment) is the right to peaceably assemble. Outlawing non-peaceful assemblies is Constitutional. I don't think outlawing assemblies in general is Constitutional, though I think SCOTUS has upheld a municipality's right to require permits. When the authorities have points of contact who're organizing the event, there's less liklihood the event will result in illegal and riotous acts.