Does it take 60 seconds to locate a phone call?

How do you detect a phone call? According to TV shows and movies, you just have to keep someone talking long enough for a detective to locate him.

While this overused rope can add some tension when paired with a timer that slowly marks, it doesn't really fit.

Before computers, there were switchboards

Before the global telephone system was computerized, calls were routed through a network of physical switches by an army of human operators. Traditionally, these operators were almost exclusively women (although the first were teenagers who were known for their rude language and unprofessional behavior).

When a call came in, the operator routed it to its destination, of course connecting it to a separate port on a plugboard. Later, however, automation gradually began to exert its influence.

In the late 19th century, the Almon Strowger company invented the world's first electromechanical step switch. Patented in 1891, this device allowed the to call others directly. While it took several decades for this invention to achieve commercial success, it eventually transformed a once-human task into one performed by the cool precision of a machine. This set the tone for the next century.

Over time, the technology used to automatically make calls has gradually become more sophisticated. Eventually, as the phones moved from the office and the payphone at home, it could handle larger quantities. People could make calls over longer distances. But the basic principles remained the same.

In those earlier times, call tracking was an ecoming . No metadata generated by , the responsibility was with the phone company. He had to trace the winding path of a connection to switches and exchanges to discover its origin. The phone company then turned it over to law enforcement.

This was a time-consuming process, requiring a negotiator or police officer to keep the call active as long as possible. If the suspect closed, the he was lost to the good guys. They had to either try again, or find another way to catch the villain.

This is probably where Hollywood gets its inspiration. Of course, they take a little poetic license. Tracking the calls inevitably took more than one or minutes to complete. But technical precision is often sacrificed on the altar of agony.

Call logs are now stored digitally

Eventually, computerization took place in the telecommunications sector. Gradually, he took on tasks, such as routing calls, previously performed by human or mechanical operators. This trend was momentary. On the consumer side, it has enabled new facilities such as caller ID and call waiting.

In terms of law enforcement, it simplified investigations. Calls no longer had to be detected manually on switches. Nor did law enforcement have to monitor calls in real time - they could just see the metadata generated by the calls.

The word metadata means "data about data". In telecommunications, metadata includes things like where a call came from and its destination, as well as the type of telephone (mobile, landline or payphone) used.

Because these files are essentially small chunks of text that can easily be stored in a database, the phone they can keep them for a long time. This allows investigators to obtain information about a call months – or even years – after it was made.

The exact duration varies considerably between telephone companies and each has its own standards. There are also differences depending on the type of telephone and the telephone program used.

In 2011, documents leaked by the FBI revealed that some telephone companies kept records of postpaid subscriptions significantly more than those made from prepaid or burner phones, which are often used by criminals.

Because call logs are now stored digitally, researchers can also access files with a level of immediacy that was not previously possible. Once all the legal documents have been created, it is simply a matter of searching for a file in a database.

Law enforcement does not have to wait

It is easier than ever for law enforcement to detect regular phone calls. You can thank the computer system for this.

Of course, there are other ways in which criminals can communicate and avoid the thin blue line, such as with VPNs and encrypted voice applications. These cases will not be resolved so easily - even if you wait a few minutes to locate the call.

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Written by Anastasis Vasileiadis

Translations are like women. When they are beautiful they are not faithful and when they are faithful they are not beautiful.

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