GPS Jamming — Can It Be Done?
… "Here’s yet another way to measure the success of GPS: by the efforts to negate it. While unintentional jamming continues to rise, intentional jamming by both foreign military forces and at-home miscreants of various stripes has shown increased vigor in the past six months. Related here are recent instances of intentional jamming on each side of the border, and (briefly outlined) one initiative mounted by the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) to counteract it. Also, here are some ways to detect and prevent jamming." …
Got going on this issue as prompted by the above thread on Slash Dot. There are a lot of goofy folk on /. with no more understanding of the GPS than what they see in movies … which is usually laughable inaccurate … Hollywood has very little clue.
But some /.’ers’ are very well versed and do their best to try to keep the liberal arts major who are still surfing from daddy’s basement at age 30 in line.
The first link above points to what may be a overly comprehensive article for many of my subscribers … but here’s a synopsis of interest:
The Domestic Variety
Meanwhile, several Internet sites offer small, localized GPS jammers for sale in the U.S. domestic market. These include a "GPS Blocker" with an advertised 10-meter to 20-meter range for roughly $200. "Just plug into a standard cigarette lighter with 12 V for power," says the web page, "and it will automatically protect you from any GPS tracking on and within your vehicle. This is a popular item with sales personnel and delivery drivers, who wish to take lunch or make a personal stop outside of their territory or route."
On May 28, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a citation to David Steele Enterprises of Newport Beach, Calif., for marketing in the United States unauthorized radio frequency devices in violation of the Communications Act of 1934, specifically a GPS jammer imported – ironically – from Taiwan. The company admitted selling 67 GPS Jammers between December. 5, 2007, and May 16, 2008. The FCC stated that the main purpose of the jammer device – blocking or interfering with radio communications – is clearly prohibited, and threatened fines of up to $11,000 per device sold.
Hacker sites also publish instructions for a "do-it-yourself GPS jammer that can have a range of up to several hundred feet. Keep in mind this is not an easy hack; a bachelor’s in electrical engineering seems like a prerequisite." The parts can be obtained at shopping-mall electronics retailers. read the full article on GPS World.
So, the bottom line is, it certainly can be done. If it is worth risking a Federal crime to take an over-long lunch break is still a question. One thing for certain that the larceny-minded workers and other clandestine jamming enthusiasts might want to take into account … although you can jam the GPS signals, say for a single vehicle … it’s a very electrically noticeable even and the results may cause a lot more grief than just following the rules might have in the first place.,