Wer mobil telefoniert, kann genau geortet werden. Über neue Web-Dienste kann der Standort eines Nutzers nun mit weiteren Daten verknüpft werden.

“Folgen Sie diesem Wagen” – wie oft haben Kinobesucher diesen Satz in Actionfilmen nicht schon gehört? Der Verfolger steigt in ein herangewunkenes Taxi und heftet sich an die Fersen des Observierten. Oder ein Fahnder lungert stundenlang im eigenen Auto herum, bis die Zielperson endlich ihr Heim verlässt. Das ist Überwachung von gestern: Im Zeitalter von Mobilfunk, Satellitennavigation und drahtlosem Internet hinterlässt jeder digitale Vorgang eine Spur, aus der sich der Aufenthaltsort eines Nutzers rekonstruieren und gar mit dessen Aktivitäten verknüpfen lässt. (more…)

By Jonathan Amos
BBC News science reporter
Imagine Central London has been invaded by an army of robots which are now bunkered down somewhere on Oxford Street. Your mission, and that of your friends, is to find the shop on the capital’s famous two-mile retail strip that harbours the enemy’s lair. All you have at your disposal is your ingenuity, and one of those next-generation mobile phones fitted with satellite-navigation and loaded with a gaming database that maps a fantasy universe on to real-world locations.
As you walk into specific shops, the gaming software is triggered to display audio and video items on the handsets - clues that take you to the next location.The clock is counting down and you will have to split up to cover the ground, using the mobiles to stay in contact and exchange snippets of information.
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Following the New York Times story on “audio illusion, phantom phone rings or ringxiety and fauxcellarm” - described as the new reason for people to either bemoan the techno-saturation of modern life or question their sanity, News.com.au via Engadget now claims the phenomenon - of falsely believing you hear your mobile phone ringing or vibrating - is so widespread it has an official name: “ringxiety” and it’s really the subconscious calculating how popular we are. David Laramie, from California’s School of Professional Psychology, who coined the termed ringxiety and says he himself is a sufferer. More on phanthom vibrations and phanthom rings in Ringtonia.

smartmobs.com

A new lifestyle trend is springing up in South Korea, one of the world’s most advanced digital hotbeds _ more and more folks are retreating to their homes instead of socializing with others.

Experts call the phenomenon “digital cocooning” because such a fad is enabled and accelerated by the digital revolution, which is occurring here in a full-fledged manner.
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MySpace and Bebo are fighting to see who is most popular among young people, reveals research. Analysis by Nielsen NetRatings shows the two companies have regularly swapped the top spot in sites that give people space to blog and post pictures. (more…)