911 cell phone calls can now be tracked

Friday, Sept. 17, 1999 | 8:52 a.m.

The Federal Communications Commission has approved a plan to allow 911 cellular calls to be traced. Why?

Some worry about the potential for abuse by law enforcement agencies, but the FCC said the rule will save lives by locating those who don't know their precise location.

Technological advances have revolutionized both the home and the workplace. Most of the changes are welcome, whether it's the Internet's ability to allow us to get information from around the globe without ever leaving our homes or the ability of computers to improve productivity at work. Not all of the developments have been healthy, though, and many have a dark side. For instance, computers can also allow highly personal information about an individual to be shared without his knowledge to others who should have no business seeing it.

So when the Federal Communications Commission approved a plan Wednesday to allow emergency dispatchers to determine the location of cellular telephone users dialing 911, some privacy advocates were alarmed. They worried about the potential for abuse by law enforcement agencies since the technology enables the phone's location to be pinpointed within several hundred feet.

But as the FCC notes, 911 calls from fixed-based phones already can be located, so this is really nothing new. Another privacy concern that should be alleviated is that the technology can only be activated once the cellular phone user makes a 911 call. This decision has the potential to save lives, considering there are 100,000 911 calls made every day -- often callers don't know exactly where they are, which can make the difference between life and death. The FCC's decision balances the need for privacy vs. the need to rescue those who require immediate help in an emergency.