NSA whistleblower. Edward Snowden has said in the past that our smartphones are transmitting information that could be monitored by different agencies, especially the NSA.
To help block such transmission, Snowden and co-designer, Andrew “Bunnie” Huang gave a presentation via video link to the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts on Thursday where he presented a device that lets the phone owner knows when his device is transmitting data over WI-FI, Bluetooth and been exploited by unauthorized security agencies.
The initial design of the phone called the introspection engine, have a small, monochromatic display, which shows whether the phone is “dark”, or whether it is transmitting data.
The device is still an academic project and not yet massively distributed to the market, but the device might change the way consumers view their smartphones as "tracking device"
Presenting the phone case, Edward Snowden said;
If you have a phone in your pocket that’s turned on, a long-lived record of your movements has been created, As a result of the way the cell network functions your device is constantly shouting into the air by means of radio signals a unique identity that validates you to the phone company,” he added.
And this unique identity is not only saved by that phone company, but it can also be observed as it travels over the air by independent, even more dangerous third parties.
Snowden, former NSA and CIA contractor, currently living in Russia leaked classified intelligence documents in June 2013, and the documents show the extent the US government has been spying on its people, foregin government and political leaders around the world.