In the fight to prevent criminals from using prohibited mobile phones in prisons, law enforcement agencies may be closer to having technology that can jam the phone signals in the prison without interfering with nearby communications. In January of this year, officials from the Department of Justice and researchers from the US National Telecommunications and Information Administration gathered in federal prisons to test technologies that could disrupt the radio services that could disrupt thousands of cell phones that enter prisons every year.
NTIA said the test used prototype equipment provided by an unnamed supplier and successfully blocked commercial cell phone signals in a cell at the Federal Correctional Institution in Cumberland, Maryland, but only 20 feet outside the facility wall. Commercial radio waves. Assistant Attorney General Beth Williams of the Legal Policy Office of the Ministry of Justice said in a statement on June 15: “These encouraging test results represent a step in addressing the security threat posed by smuggling calls .”
The ability to destroy prisoners’ mobile phones has become an important goal of the US Department of Justice and other federal agencies. Officials say everything from smuggling mobile phones into prisons can cause confusion, from controlling gang activities and violent crimes inside and outside the prison to spreading child pornography and intimidating witnesses. The Federal Communications Commission passed rules in March last year to speed up the licensing of anti-smuggling systems in prisons. Because they use commercial spectrum, they require an FCC license to operate. Such systems either detect transmissions or use management access methods developed from licensed commercial spectrum and authenticate the devices that use them.
According to a study, NTIA researchers installed cell phone portable jammer in the storage room next to the 13-by-8-foot cell on the ground floor of the cell in January. The study claims that it successfully blocked mobile phone transmissions in commercial frequency bands between 700 and 2170 MHz, but that it would not interfere with commercial transmissions when monitoring at 20 feet and 100 feet from the cell. However, according to NTIA, another study is needed to determine whether the technology may pose a potential threat to commercially licensed radio services outside the prison wall. There are still some obstacles. The agency found that the test results are only applicable to their respective locations, and the results in other prison facilities may vary widely.
In order to fully cover the detention center, a set of systems-up to 100 cell phone jammer systems-will be required-according to NTIA research, this may cause serious power problems. Williams said: “The results show that this micro-interference technology may have local impact.” “This is an encouraging signal that brings us closer to a solution that makes our community safer, And help prevent criminal activities from continuing in prisons.” The Ministry of Justice said the Bureau of Prisons will use the report to provide a better strategic overview of emerging technologies and continue testing.