
Stealth Infrastructure - hxrts
http://vvvnt.com/media/stealth-infrastructure
======
jauer
It is very common in the US for government entities to build towers (for water
storage or to fill a gap in emergency services 2-way radio coverage) and then
lease space to carriers to offset the cost and reduce the number of towers in
a area. I'd assume economics before spies if I saw a cell sector on a police
tower.

~~~
bnchdrff
Local law enforcement organizations do buy cell interception technology,
regularly: [http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/09/meet-the-
machines...](http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/09/meet-the-machines-
that-steal-your-phones-data/2/)

Seeing as companies like Harris build equipment for both running _and_ spying
on cell networks, it may make sense for them to offer a tower-mounted
system...

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jessaustin
_Strangely enough, despite all the /stuff/ of cellular infrastructure, on
roofs and poles in and around cities, the prevailing idea was that mobile
phones communicated via satellite and that all these towers were something to
do with TV._

I was conscious back then, and I don't recall this particular
misunderstanding. Soon after we wondered "what are those things that are
mounted like microwave repeaters but obviously are not microwave repeaters?"
someone had figured out they were cell antennas. This was before anyone I knew
(except my Uncle Glen) had cell phones.

Hmmm, maybe this misunderstanding was a Kiwi thing.

~~~
peterwwillis
Louis C.K. thinks phones communicate with satellites in space.

[http://gizmodo.com/5658560/louis-ck-the-shittiest-cell-
phone...](http://gizmodo.com/5658560/louis-ck-the-shittiest-cell-phone-in-the-
world-is-a-miracle)

"Give it a second, could ya? It's going to space! Could you give it a second
to get back from space?"

~~~
mindslight
Even more common are people who think GPS involves satellites tracking the
location of their phone.

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wyager
I used to work in one of the taller buildings in a city. At the top of the
building, there was a bunch of cell infrastructure. We were installing some
radio equipment in the radio room (the same place AT&T and the others had
their stuff), and I noticed two identical locked server boxes. They were very
heavy-duty compared to the server cabinets I'm used to. One was marked "FBI"
and the other was marked "USMS/DEA" (or something like that).

I couldn't really tell without going through a bunch of ceiling-mounted wires,
but I'm pretty sure these were connected to some of the civilian cell
infrastructure. There wasn't much else to connect to up there.

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knowaveragejoe
I've always been fascinated by this. Apologies if if it is linked somewhere in
the article that I missed, but where are the forums where radio enthusiasts
share hidden towers they've found?

~~~
aaronem
Not quite what you're looking for, but there is a "Stealth Infrastructure
Catalogue" linked after the article, which might serve you as a place to
start.

~~~
knowaveragejoe
I took a look there(after winding my way through Bumping Borders), it appears
to be a PDF containing a nicely formatted list of sightings from various
countries. I was hoping for the "busy forums" mentioned in the article, but
this is still very interesting. Thanks.

~~~
hxrts
this was his favorite
[http://www.waymarking.com/cat/details.aspx?f=1&guid=5df351c0...](http://www.waymarking.com/cat/details.aspx?f=1&guid=5df351c0-98ea-4b8c-9a84-844f67beb552&wst=9&kw=cell%20towers&st=2)

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dm2
One of your images is 10 MB, it probably doesn't need to be that large while
in the middle of an article, maybe a link to the full-size version instead?

~~~
hxrts
scaled it down, apologies.

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eggnog
Cellular coverage for rural NZ is quite a competitive scene. Did you check
your facts on those "Family farms"?

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lstamour
I have in fact noticed an impossibly strong AT&T signal at the rainbow bridge.
It extends even on the Canadian side. Makes it near impossible to connect
easily back to a Canadian carrier like Rogers or Telus. It always seemed a bit
strange to me, why US carriers blanketed a tourist area and Canadian ones
hadn't.

~~~
Aloha
Often the US sites are actually right on the border - I know where several
carriers are sited at the Blaine crossing, and both are within a couple block
thereof.

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tehwebguy
That was a great read!

So, was it a MITM BTS?

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hxrts
You can also find an interview with Julian Oliver here:
[http://vvvnt.com/media/julian-oliver](http://vvvnt.com/media/julian-oliver)

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irsneg
Blocked from Russia :/.

~~~
hxrts
I'll look into this. In the meantime, we did co-publish this essay with
Rhizome.org. You can find their version here (same text).

[http://rhizome.org/editorial/2014/may/20/stealth-
infrastruct...](http://rhizome.org/editorial/2014/may/20/stealth-
infrastructure/)

