trace/track a GSM mobile telephones location

[rizzir]

Hi All,

I know it is possibile to trace/track a GSM mobile telephones location all over the world.
I also know some compaines does this for chargeable service.

I am VERY interested in getting this for free! (I bet you are also).

Anyone know how to do this without empty our pockets??

Thanks,

[hungera]

in fact, i have the same interest.

[xndzizz]

who wouldnt love to know how to do this? :P

[stephj]

The only information you can get out of your own phone, is the ID of the basestation it is attached to. This is held in a register in the phone internals that can be read via the RIL interface.

It is also stored in the SIM. If the phone is totally powered off it will attempt to connect to the last known good base station on power on. (Quicker than sniffing around all available frequences for an suitable station.)

While a change of basestation could be detected by software running on a phone, only the Telco's database has the location of all active phones, so they can inform the basestation to contact your phone if there is an incoming call or data.

This data is theirs and theirs alone. It is valuable and confidential, hence the charge for any use of it.

In short all you can find out from your phone is where it is. But you know that anyway.

[XphX]

Erm... I just wrote this and then I realized that you want to track the device via GSM and not GPS. This will only work with GPS (can be activated in the background), sorry.

Just look for an application that allows you to track your device if its stolen. Some of the programs still work after changing simcard (which is not really interesting if it did not get stolen in the first place...). If everything is set up, you can easily receive a sms with the current location (you need to activate the programm by sending a sms).

If you need to know the exact position of the device like every second, you can use a jogging-trainer which logs the speed etc. But this will only store the positions on the device (you can upload them to your computer, but this can probably not be done via any wireless connection.

My english is not the best, I am sorry. But I am sure you're gonna understand everything ;D And no, I don't know any programs name because I don't use them.

XphX

[aiiro]

Stephj, are You talking about GSM or CDMA? Because for GSM I know for sure that the Telco knows a bit more - at least it is possible to triangulate the user's approximate position using three or more base stations (and probably user's signal strength for each base station too). So the DB should hold more info about the base stations available to user's current position, as for example "ready to go base stations" or something like that.

[kekele]

For tracking the phone, you can try GLympse or LookOut, Look out is better if you loos your phone, it synchronize with their website, and can see the location on the phone anywhere in the world, even can delete your data from your web account on look out.