‘Geolocation’? ‘Geotagging’? What is This Stuff?

If the Army is educating recruits about “geolocation,” maybe you should know about it too. In fact, the U.S. Army primer entitled “Geotags and Location‐​Based Social Networking” is a pretty good basic resource. Check it out.


Understand this: Your mobile phone sends out signals to cell towers, creating records of where you go throughout your day. If it is enabled with GPS, it can produce even more precise location information.


Law enforcement and intelligence agencies are rushing to exploit the potential of geolocation data, acquiring details of people’s movements and activities that once required costly, 24/7 surveillance. Uses of these data range from tracking fugitives, to reconstructing suspects’ travels, to analyzing the movements of whole populations in search of “suspicious” behavior patterns.


Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) is drafting legislation to set standards for government access to geolocation data under both criminal law and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. On Wednesday, January 26th, Cato will host him at an event we’ve titled “Location‐​Tracking Technology and Privacy.”


We’ll ask you to silence your cell phone when the program starts. You might consider turning it off on the way here…


Register now.