Prisons want jamming technology to stop criminal activity, but critics warn there would be dire consequences if jamming was allowed to propagate. In June the Department of Justice released a report that declared a solution to prevent criminal activity from happening within prisons: it successfully tested a jammer that would block mobile signals from smuggled cell phones inside a Maryland prison. Throughout the corrections world the news spread fast. For South Carolina Corrections director Brian […]
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An interesting article in light of the recent letter submitted to the FCC by ten Republican governors who want the Federal Communications Commission to give states more autonomy to apply technology that can stop prison inmates from using smuggled cellphones. Gov. Nikki Haley and her counterparts encouraged FCC Chairman Thomas Wheeler in a letter Monday to give them “flexibility and authority” to render such communication impossible. While the letter doesn’t explicitly say so, what the […]
A cautionary tale for prisons contemplating shelling out millions of dollars for managed access systems to jam contraband cell phones. A prison in New Zealand has spent over $11M (US) in installation and upgrades on a cellular signal jamming system that has not prevented the ongoing use of wireless devices. Taxpayers have forked out $17 million on cellphone jamming technology for prisons – but inmates continue to be caught with increasing numbers of contraband mobile […]
Innovation, especially technology innovation, requires a willingness to challenge accepted approaches to problems as well as entrenched industry “truths”. This nontraditional thinking is best captured by a quote from hockey great Wayne Gretzky, “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.” Back in June of 2011, we issued a press release announcing the introduction of the meshDETECT Secure Prison Cell Phone Solution. In the press release we said, […]
A Texas Tribune investigation has found that few inmates or correctional officers face legal consequences for smuggling cellphones even as prison officials have intensified efforts to keep the devices out of prisons. Just 5 percent of cellphone smuggling cases investigated by the Criminal Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General from 2009 to 2013 resulted in a criminal sentence, according to documents obtained from the office through a public information request. Some notable excerpts from the […]
Following a trend in the UK, another prison will install in-cell phones. According to the article, the reasons for this deployment are positive impact on prisoners’ rehabilitation, encouraging the maintenance of family ties, and reducing the prevalence of illegal mobile phones. Prisoners will have phones installed in their cells under new plans for a Midland prison. The move at HMP Birmingham, which takes inmates from across the Black Country, comes despite a law being introduced […]
meshDETECT® is pleased to announce that it has recently received a notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a patent application entitled, “System and method for controlling, monitoring and recording of wireless telecommunications services in penal institutions” covering its Secure Prison Cell Phone Solutions™. A notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office is a written notification that a patent application has cleared internal review and is […]
Here is the latest summary of recent news articles regarding contraband cell phones in prisons around the world. I am calling this round up of articles, “Wireless Prison Payphone™ Briefs” because this is essentially what smuggled mobile phones in jails have become – a substitute for the current wall mounted prison payphones. Alabama Inmates With Illegal Cell Phone Active On Facebook: “Cell phones are against the law, that’s a new bill that just passed last […]
A good article below about the forensic value of a confiscated contraband prison cell phone. One clarification, however: A SIM card is not the same as a microSD card – referred to in the article as a data card. The microSD card used in most smart phones is similar to a USB storage device for your PC in that it is used to store user determined data such as documents, pictures, media, etc. A Subscriber […]
This article discusses the TDCJ’s decision to investigate the viability of managed access contraband cell phone jamming. California, Mississippi and Maryland are also testing the technology. The impact of smuggled contraband cell phones in prisons has been significant. As the article states, “A couple of years ago, there were long lines at the pay phones—hours long. By this year, no one was using them, there were so many smuggled cell phones.” Update (3/15/13): Final testing […]
A fascinating article about how contraband cell phones facilitate the prison black market economy. An economy in which even some of the guards are participants. As the article states, “a $20 basic phone earns the guards that sell it an easy $400 to $500…But if you use the phone and sell time off of it to the other inmates, you’ll make your money back in one month.” As we have written before, wireless airtime is […]
A news report about smuggled cell phone sniffing dogs used in the Arizona Department of Corrections. Highlights from the report include: The dogs spend 9 weeks — 320 hours — learning how to detect cell phones. Contraband wireless phones that can be bought for as little as $40 on the outside go for as much as $800-1,200 on the inside. They’re smuggled in by friends and family during visits, by staff, even purchased during work […]
As we have written previously, the CDCR has forgone all prison telephone commissions as part of a new contract with Global Tel*link (GTL) in return for GTL installing managed access signal (MAS) jamming systems in all 33 of the CRDR’s prison facilities. However, the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) released a report today advising the State of California to use security screening systems, similar to those in airports, in state prisons before investing […]
Update (4/14): The DOJ just announced that it will require Federal Bureau of Prison halfway houses to boost services for inmates prior to release. The new rules also instruct federal work release facilities to provide cell phone access in order to help inmates seek employment opportunities. This blog post written by Seth Ferranti, a Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate, provides an inside view of the problem of contraband cell phones in federal prison. As we […]
This is a great article discussing the value and need for more communication between prison detainees in order to reduce recidivism. As the article states, “Phone calls can mean the difference between maintaining relationships that make leading a healthy life outside of prison or falling into a cycle of moving in and out of prison.” High cost is part of the reason for the epidemic of contraband cell phones being smuggled into prisons everywhere. There […]
As we have written before, a trial in a British jail has shown that in-cell telephones reduce contraband cell phone smuggling and recidivism. Now a jail in New Zealand will be installing wall phones in each of the cells of a new prison along with an advanced custodial management system. As this article states, the trial in Britain showed “significant improvements in prison security, including a marked reduction in attempts to smuggle mobile phones into […]
Using contraband cell phones to communicate via social media is increasingly a problem in prisons around the country. Cell phones equipped with internet access and cameras give prisoners the ability to access and post updates and images on Facebook and Twitter. As this article states, cell phones are “contraband that can fetch $1,000 in prison, or $100 to borrow for one call.” The meshDETECT secure prison cell phone solution blocks internet and camera access on […]
According to the article below about legislative initiatives in Maryland to increase the penalties for smuggling, possessing or receiving contraband cell phones in prison, “Cell phones are a lucrative form of contraband because, unlike drugs, they have a significant and perpetual resale and rental potential and value.” With a change of mindset, cell phones can also be lucrative form of commissary revenue for prisons. By deploying a secure prison cell phone solution with all the […]
If prisoners can have access to MP3 players, video games, email, and cable TV, why not cell phones? After all, contraband cell phones are a huge problem. In California alone, over 15,000 smuggled cell phones were confiscated from prisoners in 2011. Clearly, there is a demand for more communication by prisoners. Why not provide them a secure prison cell phone solution that maintains all the security and forensic capabilities of prison pay phones? Access to […]
There was a brief posting on the social media site MetaFilter recently regarding the impact of the high cost of prison telecommunications services entitled “Don’t Phone Home From America’s Prisons.” Among the effects of the high cost of prison phone calls is the marked increase in contraband cell phone smuggling across the country. The comments that followed the post primarily discussed individual experiences with prison phone systems. One comment in particular caught our eye: “Jail […]
This article discusses the risk of work release prisoners smuggling contraband cell phones into prison when they return to the jail. It is widely known that many work release prisoners purchase cell phones and hide them outside the jail as well. They grab them when they leave in the morning and return them to their hiding spot on the way back to jail in the evening. The meshDETECT secure prison cell phone solution can be […]
meshDETECT, Control Contraband Cell Phones Without Investment This presentation on controlling contraband cell phones in prison provides an overview of the problem, of the supply-side strategies currently deployed and of meshDETECT’s secure prison cell phone solution. To learn more, also download our whitepaper, “Reducing the Demand for Contraband Cell Phones in Correctional Facilities.”
This article discusses the legislative initiative to make it a felony in Idaho to smuggle contraband such as cell phones into prison. One interesting fact is that the Idaho Department of Corrections confiscated a cell phone that had been used over 33,000 times in six months. As we have written before, wireless is the new prison currency, and it’s likely that some of this cell phone’s airtime was traded to other prisoners for favors and […]
As we have written about before, wireless airtime and contraband cell phones have become the new prison currency. According to this article, smuggled cell phones in Ohio prisons are “a commodity inside our system,” used to sell and barter, and for personal use, said Vinko Kucinic, the corrections department’s chief security-threat investigator. Gangs, he said, are “power-based. If they can control the contraband trade, they have power.” A cellphone costing $25 on the street can […]
An article discussing the steps the Mississippi DOC is taking to address the supply of contraband cell phones in its prisons. According the Department of Corrections Commissioner Christopher Epps, “Cell phones are the biggest contraband items that we have. It’s a national problem in corrections.” The article also discuss the managed access wireless signal jammer installed at the Parchman facility. The system has blocked about 1.8 million illegal cell phone calls and text messages. The […]
Another story about a prisoner using a contraband cell phone to post photos on Facebook. This one is from the UK. We have written about the posting of pictures to Facebook before (here and here). This is a significant issue for prison officials and crime victims alike, caused by the growing problem of smuggled cell phones in prison. Posing for a secret camera in a jail cell packed with goodies, this is teenage murderer Liam […]
An article highlighting the money to be made by corrupt prison employees meeting the demand for contraband prison cell phones. This also highlights the need for a demand-side strategy to the problem of smuggled cell phones in prison. A federal grand jury has indicted a California prison worker on charges that he accepted bribes from prisoners in exchange for cell phones and cigarettes. U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy says medical office technician David Zamudio has been […]
There are a couple of interesting aspects to this article. First, that there was a riot due to contraband cell phones being confiscated. Clearly, the motivation for the anger was the potential loss of contact with loved ones. The other is the fact that jammers had been installed at this prison in Pakistan, but were removed because “the jammers affected the services of all cellular networks outside of the jails as well.” Jailed prisoners started […]
Here is another example of wireless airtime as new form of prison currency. According to the article, “inmates used a contraband cell phone for a short time in April and May of this year. The phone was used to make 1,375 unauthorized calls from jail, including 367 calls to online retailers, banks, and shipping businesses. Authorities believe Volk arranged fraudulent commissary trust account deposits as payment for access to the cell phone.” Prisons can devalue […]
The following is a description of how a contraband cell phone was smuggled into the Delaware County, IN jail by using a string to bring it in through a window! The methods used to smuggle cell phones into prison seem to be endless. The inmate stated that the reason he smuggled the phone is because he was unable to access a jail phone. As is frequently the case, the main demand driving cell phone smuggling […]
Deputies in South Carolina say a woman used two hollowed-out Bibles to try to smuggle drugs, a cell phone and weapons to a prison inmate. Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition? Sheriff Barry Faile said Monday authorities began investigating 28-year-old Shareca Latoya Jones earlier this month after a package mailed to Lieber Correctional Institution was returned to a post office in Lancaster. Inside the package were two Bibles containing razor knives, a cell phone, […]
Contraband cell phones are a problem in Canada as well as the US. As this article describes, one method of getting the contraband into a prison is to throw it over the prison fence. Staff at a federal prison in central Alberta have intercepted a package of illegal drugs and contraband cellphones intended for inmates inside. Correctional officers at Bowden Institution, 40 kilometres south of Red Deer, found the contraband during a perimeter check about […]
An interesting article about the growth of gangs in prison in Idaho and the increase in smuggled contraband cell phones as a result. Part of the strategy, as in other states such as California, is a legistative initiative to increase the penalty for smuggling cell phones. The article quotes an official, “We want to make it a felony to introduce cellphones within a prison. If they can make calls without going through the monitored phone […]
An interesting look at prison life in Massachusetts. The article states that there are only three inmate phones for over 800 prisoners. By providing a secure cell phone solution such as meshDETECT, the prison can significantly increase detainee access to their families while limiting the safety risks of the prisoner movement necessary to get the prisoners to the pay phones. It’s where no one wants to go. The shower floors are scarred from the blades […]
Smuggled cell phone detection by a dog at Riker’s Island prison is the topic of this article. The article states that smuggled cellphones haven’t been as big a problem in New York as they’ve been in other areas. The reason is the generous policy on the use of land lines. “New York state facilities charge inmates less for phone use and offer greater access than other states, said state prison spokesman Peter Cutler. That cuts […]
Traditionally, tobacco and stamps have been the preferred currency in prisons. But now it appears that in some prisons cellular airtime on contraband smuggled phones may be the new prison currency. According to this article, prisoners in a South African jail are using smuggled cell phones to run a scam to get wireless airtime. A prison official states, “We have found the phones and sim cards in the strangest of places. Some of them hide […]
This article discusses the use of K9 to detect smuggled cell phones in a Tulsa prison. The article quotes a prison official as saying, “Cell phones are a way for them to communicate without us listening.” The meshDETECT secure prison cell phone solution records each call and gives corrections officials the ability to monitor detainee conversations during and after the call itself. The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office added a new deputy to the force. Baxy, […]
This article touches on just about all the key issues and challenges facing prisons, detainees and families when talking about the contraband cell phone problem. Key quotes from the article: Availability – “cellphones are just everywhere in prison nowadays…. It’s easy to borrow one from a guy”. “This year, guards (in California) are on pace to seize about 15,000 phones — nearly one for every 11 inmates.” Corruption – “Almost as troubling as prisoners gaining […]
This article is another example of the corrupting influence of the demand for cell phones in prison. The demand for smuggled cell phones, like the demand for drugs in prison, drives the economic incentives to supply this demand. In addition to supply prevention, the satisfaction of demand, using a secure cell phone solution like meshDETECT will reduce the economic incentives to supply contraband cell phones. Agents with the Alabama Department of Corrections arrested a correctional […]
This calls into question the viability of using cell phone jammers in prisons to disable smuggled cell phones. At least for those jammers that aren’t salt proof! Jamming is one of the myriad ways being tested to address the supply of contraband cell phones in prisons around the world. A strategic focus on the demand side of this problem – prisoners’ desire for more communications options while incarcerated – is what is missing from these […]
This article is about the challenges and indignities of visiting a loved one in jail. The sheriff in charge of the jail discusses the environment in the visiting room, “There are loads of kids there. And a strong part of me says that’s not a good environment for any child. I don’t want kids seeing this stuff. The other side is, if they’re connecting with their father, that’s a good thing, too. We can’t do […]