Cell phone companies sharing your history

[Tim Vasquez]

For those of you getting your ducks in order for cell phone plans this spring, you may want to consider this:

http://americablog.blogspot.com/2006/01/am...ral-wesley.html

Apparently anyone with a bit of cash can purchase your call history -- especially if you are with T-Mobile or Cingular.

Tim

 

[Jeff Snyder]

From Cingular.com --> http://cingular.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=...eases&item=1427

Cingular Wireless Fights Back Against Cell Phone Record Websites, Obtains Temporary Restraining Order Against Companies Involved in Theft and Sale of Cell Phone Records

ATLANTA, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Cingular Wireless has succeeded in the first round of a court fight against websites that offer cell phone records for sale.

Cingular today obtained a Temporary Restraining Order from the U.S. District Court in Atlanta, GA, against two companies, Data Find Solutions, Inc. and 1st Source Information Specialists, Inc. Several weeks ago, Cingular filed a civil lawsuit alleging that these companies unlawfully obtained and disseminated Cingular customer records. The court has now granted Cingular's request for a Temporary Restraining Order in order to halt these companies' ability to obtain and sell Cingular customer records.

Cingular believes that Data Find Solutions, Inc. previously owned and operated several websites that advertise the sale of phone records, including http://locatecell.com/ and http://celltolls.com/, and that 1st Source Information Specialists, Inc. currently owns and operates these websites. Cingular's lawsuit charges that these companies or their representatives obtained customer records through fraudulent means, such as by posing as customers seeking information about their own accounts.

"Cingular will not tolerate the theft of customer records," said Joaquin Carbonell, Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Cingular Wireless. "We plan to continue fighting cell phone record theft on a number of fronts, including working with law enforcement and policymakers to crack down on websites that offer cell phone records for sale."

Cingular noted that the company has a variety of safeguards in place to protect against unauthorized access to customer information, and the company continues to evaluate and enhance these safeguards. In addition, consumers who wish to better protect themselves should follow standard practices to prevent identity theft, such as adding a password to their account, guarding their password and other personal information, and shredding invoices and account information before discarding these documents.

About Cingular Wireless

Cingular Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving 52.3 million customers. Cingular, a joint venture between AT&T Inc., formerly SBC Communications Inc., (NYSE: T), and BellSouth Corporation (NYSE: BLS), has the largest digital voice and data network in the nation -- the ALLOVER(SM) network -- and the largest mobile-to-mobile community of any national wireless carrier. Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to offer Rollover(SM), the wireless plan that lets customers keep their unused monthly minutes. Details of the company are available at http://www.cingular.com/. Get Cingular Wireless press releases e-mailed to you automatically. Sign up at http://www.cingular.com/newsroom.

SOURCE: Cingular Wireless

CONTACT: Mark Siegel, +1-404-236-6312, or wireless, +1-404-374-2799, or
[email protected], or Rochelle Cohen, +1-202-419-3007, or wireless,
+1-202-341-5967, or [email protected], both of Cingular Wireless

Web site: http://www.cingular.com/
http://www.cingular.com/newsroom
http://locatecell.com/
http://celltolls.com/

EDIT: An exerpt from an article from the Chicago Sun-Times --> http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nw...s-cell15s1.html

A felon is a corporate officer of a firm under investigation by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan for selling telephone calling records over the Internet without the permission of the phone companies' customers, court documents show.

Steven B. Schwartz, 47, of Tamarac, Fla., has served a prison term for armed burglary and also was convicted of delivery of cocaine, another felony, records show.

"Attorney General Madigan is very concerned that a convicted felon is operating this type of business," said Melissa Merz, a spokeswoman. "While at this time we cannot allege any illegal behavior associated with locatecell.com, the idea that a convicted felon is selling people's private lives for about $100 is truly frightening."

An attorney for Schwartz did not return a call seeking comment.

Schwartz is listed as the registered agent and corporate secretary of 1st Source Information Services Inc. One of the company's Web sites, locate cell.com, sells phone records with no questions asked, a Chicago Sun-Times investigation has found.