Is it possible to locate a persons location by mobile number

[Hobo]

As per the title, if I have someones mobile number is there an app or website I can use that will show where that phone is, even if only roughly ?

[anonymous-user]

No.

[BoRED S2upid]

Not unless you are the police.

[James P]

Not unless that person has consented through an app like Life360.

[AB]

Yep, just phone the number and ask them

[Ham_and_Jam]

If they turn up their ringer volume REALLY LOUD…

[Scabutz]

BoRED S2upid said:

Not unless you are the police.

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

[jimmyjimjim]

Sorta. For my network, I can triangulate by cells and call/registration time to get a track of activity against time. Actually, it's largely automated; input a cell number and time scale and there's a report I can run which will spit out a map for me. Takes more time to find the link than to run it.

This is at a network message level, so it's not as accurate as it could be. If we get the RF engineers involved they can provide more detail, but that's not something that can be done quickly.

edit for clarity as I'm a bit sick and wasn't as clear as I thought I was being.
Yes, the capability exists and inside the network this is commonplace. As long as you have access. You will not, as you're neither an employee or the Police making a lawful request.
If you were an employee, you'd need a good reason to access the records. In my case I've a presumed need to know for troubleshooting and the accuracy that I have access to doesn't need additional privileges (nor do I need or want more). The accuracy the police would get would be a bit better.

Oh, and I'm in the wrong country for you.

Edited by jimmyjimjim on Thursday 5th December 05:34

[768]

I'm tempted to ask more. There is a lot you could technically (sometimes even legally) do, depending on the use case, but I suspect the right answer here is to just forget about it.

[jan8p]

Scabutz said:

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

The Chief Constable probably doesn't spend all day signing off on such mundane operational requests

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Scabutz said:

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

My sister-in-law is a police civilian who has been working on the phone tracking team for over 15 years. Tracking is mostly used for missing people (generally those suspected to be suicidal), it has to be signed off but that decision definitely isn't only up to the Chief Constable.

[jimmyjimjim]

768 said:

I'm tempted to ask more. There is a lot you could technically (sometimes even legally) do, depending on the use case, but I suspect the right answer here is to just forget about it.

I was chatting with the family at Thanksgiving. SiL (who is on our network) asked, "you can't read our text messages, can you?"
"No, I can see what numbers messaged what other number at what time, anything above that is privileged and restricted to the regulated services team"
"That's a relief"
"Yes, I have to ask my mate Jeremy on the regulated services team if I want the contents"
"..."<slightly nervous look>

Actually getting access to those messages would likely be a career limiting move; I've no interest in accessing any.

I could access some 911 calls details in my previous job; again, enough to know who called and when, from what location and so on. I always enjoyed that - not for the access, but because everytime someone asked me to investigate, usually because there was a delay in connecting the call, it was ALWAYS a config issue on their side. Never a fault on ours. Usually someone screwing up the PIDF-LO.

[Jamescrs]

Scabutz said:

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

Requires an Authorising Officer which is usually someone of Superintendent rank or equivalent. Some forces now use an external Authorising Officer to do this work but even then it is typically a retired Superintendent or equivalent relevant experience

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:01

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:02

[essayer]

I was involved with phones for a while early 2000s and I’m sure I recall some service being introduced that allowed you to look up a phones location without the permission of the holder or police etc.

Was that a thing or have I misremembered?

[vaud]

essayer said:

I was involved with phones for a while early 2000s and I’m sure I recall some service being introduced that allowed you to look up a phones location without the permission of the holder or police etc.

Was that a thing or have I misremembered?

There was a lot around RIPA for phone companies to share the data, but not a lookup for the public (imagine the safeguarding issues for people in abusive relationships, police, etc)

Edited by vaud on Friday 6th December 08:40

[768]

essayer said:

I was involved with phones for a while early 2000s and I’m sure I recall some service being introduced that allowed you to look up a phones location without the permission of the holder or police etc.

Was that a thing or have I misremembered?

There's HLR, but that's probably a decade earlier. It's not very fine grained - might suggest if a phone is active in it's home country.

[thisnameistaken]

Jamescrs said:

Scabutz said:

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

Requires an Authorising Officer which is usually someone of Superintendent rank or equivalent. Some forces now use an external Authorising Officer to do this work but even then it is typically a retired Superintendent or equivalent relevant experience

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:01

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:02

Yes, live location data can be verbally authorised as Grade 1 (immediate threat to life) or Grade 2 (urgent operational necessity when there's no time to make a written application) by a Superintendent. The actual live location data is really easy to acquire and is generally authorised as part of any other forward facing application for communications data where cell site is requested. that's many hundreds of applications per day for England, often thousands.

In none immediate threat to life situations it's simply a written application that's authorised by the Investigatory Powers Commissioners Officer (IPCO) within a set time scale and isn't even looked at by a high ranking police officer. IPCO are the independent arbiter assigned to assess and balance the threat presented with the breach of article 8, the collateral intrusion and risk associated with the objectives.

Higher authorities, for directed surveillance is also signed off by a superintendent.

Higher still, intrusive surveillance is then authorised by the Chief Officer or their staff, Assistant Chief or Deputy Chief on a rota.

So live location data is quite a few steps away from needing a Chief's authority and is readily available from the networks for applicable reasons.

[MesoForm]

vaud said:

essayer said:

I was involved with phones for a while early 2000s and I’m sure I recall some service being introduced that allowed you to look up a phones location without the permission of the holder or police etc.

Was that a thing or have I misremembered?

There was a lot around RIPA for phone companies to share the data, but not a lookup for the public (imagine the safeguarding issues for people in abusive relationships, police, etc)

Pretty certain there was a website where you could put in a phone number and it would tell you where it was, only lasted a day I think. There was a thread on here about it, I remember it wasn't accurate and someone said they got in trouble asking why someone was where they shouldn't be.

Can't for the life of me find any mention of it, we're going back 10-15 years here.

[welshjon81]

Leave the poor girl alone.

[Scabutz]

Jamescrs said:

Scabutz said:

Even then it's not easy. Live location data is only released by the phone companies when the Chief Constable signs off on the request.

Requires an Authorising Officer which is usually someone of Superintendent rank or equivalent. Some forces now use an external Authorising Officer to do this work but even then it is typically a retired Superintendent or equivalent relevant experience

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:01

Edited by Jamescrs on Friday 6th December 08:02

Ah I must have mis remembered. I worked for the police a long time ago and was doing work with a guy who dealt with a lot of RIPA stuff and sure he told me one day he was going to HQ to get the CC to sign an order for live phone data but maybe it must have been something else.