Here is the latest summary of recent news articles regarding contraband cell phones in prisons around the world. I call these periodic round up of news items, “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. Two years ago, we explored some of the news regarding wireless prison tablet devices; which highlighted how prison payphones were being replaced […]
technology
9 posts
As we have commented before, we believe that contraband cell phones are a problem of both supply and demand. Due to the demand for cell phones in prison, there is an active and highly lucrative pipeline of supply. Most prison administrations have focused on restricting the supply of contraband cell phones through detection, jamming and search. However, like the problem of drug smuggling, without addressing the demand for contraband, the problem will never be solved. […]
The first round of comments on the FCC’s Second Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the reduction of the cost of all inmate calls are in. Here is one of the more interesting insights we have gleaned from those submissions: The Prison Policy Initiative’s submission on advanced inmate communications services in prison discusses the very real need that these new services (such as the meshDETECT Secure Prison Cell Phone Solution) address: These Services Address a Real […]
As we have written before, managed access cell phone jamming systems being tested in prisons around the world have been deployed with mixed results. In addition to requiring ongoing management and investment post deployment, they have a spotty record and not all vendor’s equipment works as advertised. Recently, the Cayman Islands issued a report on their managed access trial. According to the report, which is discussed in the article below, “The prisons service installed a […]
This article excerpted below from the CBC News discusses the efforts in Canadian Federal Prisons to detect and confiscate drugs smuggled to prisoners. Much like the efforts to stop contraband cell phones, the focus is almost entirely on new technology to identify and eliminate supply, with much less effort in addressing the demand. Figures on seizures in federal institutions from the last fiscal year show traditional methods like security staff and sniffer dogs have been […]
Continuing a trend to fight contraband cell phones in prisons through the deployment of managed access cell phone signal jammers, Maryland has become the latest state to investigate the technology. Maryland has received a federal grant to help fight cell phone use in prisons. The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services announced a $2 million contract over three years with Columbia, Md.-based Tecore Networks to deploy technology known as managed access. The system […]
A new prison in Australia is proposing the installation of advanced technology in each of the cells. This will include in-cell telephones. The private prison company Serco states, “The introduction of in-cell telephones in its overseas prisons had resulted in significant improvements in prison security, including a drop in the number of prisoners trying to smuggle cellphones.” The meshDETECT secure prison cell phone solution allows existing prisons and jails to realize the same reduction in […]
No technology is perfect, and that includes cell phone jamming technology. The real issue here is how compromised is the wireless blocking system installed at Parchman to combat contraband cell phones? The meshDETECT secure cell phone service has no internet access available so prisoners cannot access Facebook or Twitter. An inmate inside a Mid-South prison has been able to take pictures and post them online, despite a high-tech blocking technology put in place to keep […]
The California legislation making the possession of contraband prison cell phones a crime has been approved in committee. Will this stop the flow of smuggled cell phones into jails? Has the fact that drugs are illegal stopped them from being smuggled in to jails and prisons across the country? Senate Bill 26, authored by Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), was approved by the Assembly Public Safety Committee today on a unanimous bipartisan vote. SB 26 would […]