Top UK Cop Says Hackers Should Be Punished Not With Prison, But With Jammed WiFi Connections
from the yeah,-that'll-work dept
Here's a story that starts out well. One of the UK's top police officers, Chief Superintendent Gavin Thomas, has said that putting people in prison for offenses like hacking into computers makes no sense. He points out that it costs around $50,000 a year to keep someone in a traditional prison, and that education programs are likely to be a far more cost-effective solution, especially in terms of reducing recidivism. This is absolutely right, and it's great to hear a senior officer admit it. Unfortunately, things go downhill from here. He told the Telegraph:
If you have got a 16-year-old who has hacked into your account and stolen your identity, this is a 21st century crime, so we ought to have a 21st century methodology to address it.
His solution is as follows:
He said convicted criminals could be fitted with electronic jammers around their wrists or ankles which blocked wifi signals and prevented them from going online.
Leaving aside the human rights implications, which to his credit Thomas acknowledges, there is another big problem with the proposal, as Techdirt readers have doubtless already spotted. The people wearing these WiFi jammers would be those who have been found guilty of some computer-related crime. By definition, then, they are likely to be tech-savvy. So they probably have other computers that can use Ethernet connections to access the Internet. In addition, they are unlikely to have any problems using Bluetooth or a USB cable to reverse-tether their mobiles to a system with wired access. The more adventurous might even try to rig up some kind of Faraday shielding to jam the jammer. In other words, this isn't going to work, but would probably cause havoc with everyone else's WiFi connections.
Back in 2015, Thomas was quoted by Computer Business Review on the topic of encryption, and the problems it posed for the police, when he said:
It is utterly essential for detectives and criminal investigators to use data held on smartphones and other devices when they are investigating serious crimes.
Given his belief that jamming bracelets would stop convicted computer criminals from using the Internet, the worry has to be that he shares the mistaken view that tech companies can create a safe system of crypto backdoors or "golden keys" that only the authorities can use. Let's hope he takes some expert advice before offering an opinion on that one.
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Filed Under: access, gavin thomas, hackers, jail, law enforcement, punishment, uk, wifi
Reader Comments
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If a hacker wore a jammer that stopped Wi-Fi from working around him...
And incidentally, what would stop him from just using cellular data on a smartphone to do his internet stuffz?
(Jamming that would be outright illegal due to the potential necessity of needing to call emergency services if something happens.)
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Re: If a hacker wore a jammer that stopped Wi-Fi from working around him...
Kudos for actually recognising that jail isn't a solution to a lot of these problems, but if your idea can have numerous holes pointed out the moment it's mentioned to anyone remotely tech-savvy, it needs a lot more work.
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Re: If a hacker wore a jammer that stopped Wi-Fi from working around him...
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Re: If a hacker wore a jammer that stopped Wi-Fi from working around him...
I see this being implemented just as self-driving cars hit the road, relying on wireless connections for cloud data and processing and to talk to traffic lights.
Heck, the hackers will line up for this punishment so they can post the results to YouTube.
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Jammers are completely illegal…
The only place the U.K. can use them is on a battlefield or
the airspace above it. Thomas probably knows it already.
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The world is truly filled with idiots
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Re: The world is truly filled with idiots
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Re: Re: The world is truly filled with idiots
This one is not a party issue, both parties have no trouble with using the police to fuck with those they don't like. They just do it in different ways.
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Re: Re: The world is truly filled with idiots
Wait... what? Let me re-quote the beginning of the blog post:
Stop trying to shoehorn everything into US politics please. The US does NOT have a monopoly on stupidity.
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I'm happy
I'm happy that someone in that position considers alternatives for prison. Whether the alternatives are good or bad is irrelevant. What's important is the discussion.
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Re: I'm happy
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Re: Re: I'm happy
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C'mon man don't bring me problems, bring solutions - just nerd harder.
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Re:
Forex: a keyboard makes for a handy paddle, USB cables could be used as whips or ropes, and the power strip - well, let's just stop there.
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Let them keep DNS blocking pirate sites and "jamming" the internet!
We'll just be over here laughing at them and bypassing their efforts.
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wifi jamming
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Re: wifi jamming
"it costs around $50,000 a year to keep someone in a traditional prison".
That's $50K/year for a maximum possible of 10 years (as per RIAA's wishes).
Adding to that, prison will turn many hackers into hardened criminals (unless you jail them for life - MPAA's and many 3LA's wet dream).
These people aren't your average dumb-ass who posts on Facebook during a theft either.
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Re: Re: wifi jamming
grumble grumble
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prison will turn many hackers into hardened criminals
that's only half the problem. imprisoning hackers will turn some hardened criminals into hackers.
you want more hackers, do you, maybe with more focussed intent?
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Re: Re: wifi jamming
You sure? These are the hackers who get caught. Not the good ones.
But I can imagine another scenario: someone who gets one of these blockers installed wanders into strategic locations, and lets people know they can pay them to go away.
After all, this is government-sanctioned RF jamming going on here. Nobody can get them arrested for complying with a court order.
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Re:
The idea is sound the implementation, a little more difficult but doable.
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That is why I do not trust ankle bracelets any father than I could throw them. Jammers can be bought for about 30USD.
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And also...
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Re:
This would also allow the offender to go out and buy bolt cutters, cut the device off, and then put it into the trash compactor and destroy it.
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and then you have
ya i can se this going no where good ..ever but the lolz be incredibly funny when all ones has to use to get round it is a landline
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He said convicted criminals could be fitted with electronic jammers around their wrists or ankles which blocked wifi signals and prevented them from going online.
As well as anyone else around them.
Seems like this guy could use a 21st century education to go with his 21st century thinking.
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Good idea, Chief!
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- the jammer would only jam bad guys wifi;
- the jammer would also jam wired wifi.
There you are, problems solved.
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I kinow where he got the idea:
His doom’s extremely hard –
He’s made to dwell –
In a dungeon cell
On a spot that’s always barred.
And there he plays extravagant matches
In fitless finger-stalls
On a cloth untrue,
With a twisted cue
And elliptical billiard balls!
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I'll buy in for "3", "4", and "17"
Second pool: how many milliseconds would it take your average juvenile delinquent's parent to find a crackpot lawyer willing to claim that wi-fi has deleterious effects on human tissue, and sue for cruel+unusual punishment?
It would be so much easier just to pass a new law saying that photons will not vibrate in certain frequencies in the presence of convicted criminals. After all, we have the best lawyers in the world, and I can't believe they couldn't come up with suitable wording if they'd just lawyer harder.
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Get a large Faraday bag and stick your foot in it.
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rAISE FOOT
Open mouth..
Insert FOOT...
Wiggle toes..
Start chewing..
ENJOY...
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Re:
And it can also be defeated with a firewall. You can prevent their monitoring software from "calling home", as it were, by blocking the right port and/or IP range in your firewall, and their monitoring will not work.
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Jam the jammer
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Jail White supremacist Craig Cobb
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