Tracking Devices

[<dspdem>]

Looking for your experiences with tracking devices in news vehicles. Was it a good thing? Was it abused? What company have you used?

[<pointless>]

What's the point? Why would you need them?

[Gedy]

With Nextel having GPS now, it really opens it up to track you. If your company Ponies up the coin to pay for it..

[The Thing on The Sticks]

This system is alerdy being used by other companys. When I worked construction I remember hearing stories of cable installers who got busted sleeping in the parking lot of Walmart. I even knew a guy who lied to his boss about where he was when he knew the phone had a tracker in it, not bright. Like Gedy said Nextel alerdy has it and many companys are opting to quietly include it in the "Company cell phone"

[Terry E. Toller]

If you are doing what you are supposed to, it seems OK to me. In fact, what if someone blamed YOU for flipping them off at an intersection at 3 PM. The boss checks the GPS and you were across town at that time...

I am working for a Private Investigator right now and he gave me a cell with GPS. It's cool. It keeps track of exactly where I am and any moment and even records my speed. Wouldn't it be fun to run into some cop who would lie about your speed and write a ticket...

[WV24fpspro]

Actually Terry a similar type of device will be installed into all cars being made for sale within the United States in about the next three years. It will track ones speed and other factors. If one decides to opt out with their insurance company; in an accident ones data could be pulled from the car- and even used in both civil and even criminal procedings.

Thats big brother for ya... The near future is really beginning to look like scenes from the book 1984; but worse...

[C St. SW]

Originally posted by WV24fpspro:
Actually Terry a similar type of device will be installed into all cars being made for sale within the United States in about the next three years. It will track ones speed and other factors. If one decides to opt out with their insurance company; in an accident ones data could be pulled from the car- and even used in both civil and even criminal procedings.Sure, GPS systems and other navigation systems will probably become standard features on most vehicles. But for anyone, private or public, to be able to use any information derived from a privately owned GPS system to deny services or base fees on such information or for the data to be used in an evidentiary procedure without due process.....I have a hard time believing would be possible.

Care to provide some sources for this?

[ January 22, 2005, 08:03 PM: Message edited by: C St. SW ]

[<NewsguyMark>]

I've driven company vehicles with GPS. It tracked my every move.

Since I was driving responsibly, I never had a problem with it. Still don't.

[WV24fpspro]

One thing which the average citizen tends to overlook is that: the ability to drive or have a drivers license isn't a right- its a privelage.

The consumer version of a black box recorder already exists in several automobiles; and is widely used in the commercial transportation as well.

In the near future insurance companies will offer a type of discount to consumers who make their data available in case of an accident. Its a type of opt out rule similar to ones option to opt out of certain lawsuit options on (certain)consumer automobile accidents.

An example of when this data may be pulled for a court proceeding would be in the facts would be in dispute regarding an accident. Note that this can be done well before going to trial. Say if one party states that another didn't have their light on when driving at night- or in one was exceeding the speed limit, etc..

I'm fully in support of the due process rules, but between big brother and the dominance of the big insurance industry- they seemed to have slipped this one through wihtout many citizens knowing the facts regarding it. I'd welcome a news story to make the public more aware of what has happened concerning these issues.

I'll also be researching this issue further to provide some links to this issue. More to come soon.

[OU- BOBCAT]

I think this kind of technology could revolutionize our industry... imagine every news vehicle with a system like that of most cops... where the desk could send you assignments to the screen in your unit complete with maps and information... no more scrambling to find a pen to write down an address... also on the other end of the desk... Imagine no being sent across town to a house fire... when another crew was 2 miles away...

I think this is the future for news especially in major markets where spot news is the backbone.

[WV24fpspro]

Here are two above average links...

www.privacynotes.com/EDR_Automotive/index.html (http://www.privacynotes.com/EDR_Automotive/index.html)

The above mentioned link provides some interesting (although a bit outdated) numbers of exactly how many Americans are presently driving vehicles with a black box installed and fully operational. Note that some black boxes only record a few parameters- some are easily capable of recording over one hundred- and storing them for an indefinate amount of time.

Also try...

www.npccrs.com/drlist.php?type=adr (http://www.npccrs.com/drlist.php?type=adr)

I've also begun work on my own site and data; but based upon the speed on this research it might not be available for a while. It will be available in the future to anyone who doesn't have a dial-up line (sorry), and also should be available to copy or download in at least three different formats including: WP12, MSword (2002 and above), and Adobe (version 6 and above).

Also feel welcome to do the generic search engine under "automotive black box" or any variation thereof...

[ January 23, 2005, 04:30 PM: Message edited by: WV24fpspro ]

[<NYshooter>]

FYI --

There is such a criminal case about to happen here in NY. Two young men face manslaughter charges for an accident that killed a couple.
The defendants were driving 2 cars alongside each other on a stretch of road; the victims' jeep was struck when it made a left in front of them. Speed may have been a factor. In a preliminary hearing, the judge OK'd the use of info from a black box taken from one of the defendant's vehicles, a corvette.