FAQs

Global System for Mobile communications (GSM: originally from Groupe Spécial Mobile) is the most popular standard for mobile phones in the world. GSM differs from its predecessors in that both signalling and speech channels are digital, meaning that data communication is easily built into the system. GSM is a communication system that has been utilised for a range of our live listening devices. Originally these operated on the 2nd Generation (2G) frequency networks, but recently our products have been evolved to use 4th Gen (4G) network availability for a number of reasons:

• GSM 2G networks are no longer available in many countries worldwide
• 2nd Gen based PCB modules are no longer being manufactured
• 3G was quickly supercede and is already being phased out globally
• 4G networks are now cellular standard for (audio) communication transmission

Since the advent of the cellular communication networks, the technology that supports mobile communication has been constantly evolving. The original analogue system was gradually phased out across the globe, superseded by a fully digital system, which started with 2nd Generation (2G) cellular network. Over an extended period of time 3rd, 4th and 5th Generation networks have been added to the comunication networks, whilst at the same time the older technology has been phased out.

In some areas of the world early cellular services were never rolled out because of lack of infrastructure investment. In other countries 2G services were initailly adopted, but are now not available because they have been phased out and replaced by newer technology. Although there is generally a timeframe set out by each country for the switching off older technology, these are of course only guidelines and cannot be relied upon to the letter.

Due to market driven requirements and the availability of GSM technology, at Spy Equipment UK we are now only able to produce devices that function using 4G radio frequencies worldwide, so in some areas of the world that have not adopted or upgraded to 4G our GSM units will unfortunately not function. Our previous 2G devices will still continue to operate in countries that have networks that still support the 2G cellular infrastructure (this includes the UK) until the final phasing out of these older services.

Prior to purchasing one of our new GSM listening bugs, please be certain to check out the availability of 4G cellular services in the country in which it will be used.

There are four main reasons why you are uanble to get an answer from the SIM card in your GSM product:

• The SIM card in the GSM device has been switched off by the network provider
• The SIM card in the device has been inserted incorrectly or has not fully inserted
• There is limited or no GSM network reception in the area the unit is being used
• The battery of the unit has fully discharged and will need recharging
• The SIM card was swapped over when already switched on (battery powered device) so will neeed a restart

There are a few different things can affect sound quality with a GSM unit;

• Certain networks are better in relation to audio transmission and reproduction, so experiment with different networks if possible
• Poor signal strength affects reception and therefore as a knock-on effect, audio quality
• Our GSM units have high gain microphones and as such constant background noise can affect sound quality
• Placement of a GSM device closer to the subject of the audio surveillance will enhance audio pickup and therefore quality
• Be sure not to place a GSM device behicnd a ‘wall of noise’ such as behind a television or beside a radio
• On a battery powered device, poor or dying batteries can cause poor sound quality, so be sure to recharge before power fades

Although our GSM listening devices are generally supplied with an EE SIM card, this may not necessarily be the best option for where you intend to place the product. EE has a reputation of providing the best geographical network coverage, however in some areas the alternative mobile network operators can still provide a better service and would therefore be worthy of serious consideration.

Ensuring that you are getting the strongest signal provides certain distinct advantages when using a GSM product:

• A consistently strong network signal will increase the chance of being able to remotely monitor the device at any time/li>
• Strong network coverage enhances the chances of optimal audio capability
• Battery powered devices will benefit from increased battery life when the network signal is consistently strong

Here is a link to a free OFCOM mobile availability website that provides detailed coverage information for all UK networks for Voice, Data and 5G – https://checker.ofcom.org.uk/en-gb/mobile-coverage

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is the original global navigation system that uses a constellation of at least 24 Medium Earth Orbit satellites that transmit precise microwave signals, the system enables a GPS receiver to determine its location, speed, direction, and time. This American military system was originally started in 1973 and for an extended period of time it was the only system of it’s type available. However, over the last few decades other systems have also come online including GLONASS, a Russian system and the European Space Agency system, GNSS. Despite the fact that there is now several different systems the commonly used phrase use to describe all systems of this type tends to be GPS.

Modern satellite tracking systems more often than not use more than one system for location services and as such are fitted with several differnet receiving systems to assist in accuracy and response speed. Global satellites are passive, which means they broadcast onto the surface of the Earth, so do not require two-way GPS communication from a device on the surface. The device simply needs to be in a position where it can receive the broadcast signal that is strong enough from a number of satellites to enable a positional calculation.

The tracking device does however need to communicate it’s positional data so that it can be remotely tracked and although there are some large and expensive systems that do use two-way GPS communication to send out this data, the normal method is over the available GSM networks. This is why tracking devices are as a gneral rule fitted with an active SIM card that either needs to be on a contarct with network providers or a prepay SIM card with available credit.

The positional communications sent out are directed to a website platform that configures the data onto mapping systems that generally use Google Maps to show exact easy-to-understand locations. Over time the cataloguing of locational information on the tracking platform can provide historally arranged data to show patterns of movement.

Although GPS technology has come a long way since being made publicly available in 1983 there are still limitations and many sources of interference and jamming, both natural and artificial.

The most common cause for GPS failure is due to line of sight, if the unit has little or no direct line of sight to the sky this can cause either weak signal issues or full GPS failure. Most vehicle trackers are mounted beneath the vehicle and as such the unit does not have direct line of sight, however as long as the unit has been able to get a strong fix before being deployed this should not cause too many problems. The actual physical location of the vehicle, can throw up problems, such as if a tacked vehicle is stopped in a heavily built up area, such as narrow ally ways and streets, the GPS broadcast signals will be limited and could be prevented from making a connection with the tracking unit. This can often cause intermittent reporting problems with the unit, particularly from a ‘cold start’ situation when the movement sensor has just activated and the unit is already under strain establishing a firm signal.

Since GPS signals at terrestrial receivers tend to be relatively weak, it is easy for natural sources of electromagnetic radiation to desensitise the receiver, making acquiring and tracking the satellite signals difficult or impossible. Solar flares are one such naturally occurring emission with the potential to degrade GPS reception, and their impact can affect reception over the half of the Earth facing the sun, however due to irregularity of such an occurrence this is unlikely to cause a consistent problem. GPS signals are also subjected to interference from Van Allen Belt radiation when the satellites pass through the South Atlantic Anomaly, this occurs on a regular basis and can last for up to 8 minutes at a time.

Man-made Electromagnetic Interference can also disrupt, or jam, GPS signals. In one well documented case, an entire harbour was unable to receive GPS signals due to unintentional jamming caused by a malfunctioning TV antenna preamplifier. Metallic features in windshields, such as defrosters, can act as a Faraday Cage, degrading reception just inside the car. Intentional jamming is also possible. Generally, stronger signals can interfere with GPS receivers when they are within radio range, or line-of-sight. Although GPS jamming devices are available worldwide they are generally illegal in most countries and extremely easy to detect with specialised signal detectors.

The need to know what is happening now or what has previously occurred or maybe both will determine what is absolutely necessary for your tracking needs. Not all tracking devices are set up to provide both aspects of tracking information.

Live tracking relies on up-to-date positional data being received from a tracking device on a regular basis that enables the receiver to be kept up-to-date of the exact current location of a tracking device and therefore the person or object that it is being used to track. Dependant upon the system being used, the live information can either be requested at that time or live updates are automatically sent out by the tracking device at specific intervals without the requirement for an on-demand request.

An on-demand live location request is generally condiucted using a Smartphone where a call or a text message is directed to the SIM number in the tracking device, which triggers the device to respond with it’s current locational data. This is received on the Smartphone as a text message in the form of a web link, which when opened displays on-screen a pinned location on Google Maps. For tracking systems where live updates are automatically sent out the software sends a new position every 5 to 30 seconds and this information will instantly updates the pinned map location. If the pinned location moves from one update to the next then it can be assumed that the tracking device is moving. Generally 5 minutes after the tracking device has stopped moving the tracking software ceases to send any further live locational data, which helps conserve the power source of the tracker.

On-demand tracking devices do not generally have a way of storing and displaying historical positional data. With a dedicated tracking app/website the more sophisticated tracking systems are able to catalogue a large amount of historical data over an extended period of weeks and months which can then be presented in numerous way to enable the user to analyse the positional history in a way that suits their needs. This could be the ability to playback information on a mapping screen, show just the locations where the tracker stopped, the examination of speed data, etc. A racking platform will also have an alert system to notify the user of certain tracker or locational events. As such a dedicated tracking platform can be viewed on both Smartphone and computer, as a website, with secure login. A dedicated tracking system of this type will have an ongoing cost, usually in the form of an annual fee.

When people ask this question they generally mean that they are interested in knowing about tracking devices that are hidden or not easily spotted by the naked eye.

Satellite tracking devices (GPS) need a power source to enable them to feed out positional information over the cellphone network and process locational data from many satellites overhead. When fitted to a vehicle on a permanent basis then power is drawn from the vehicle’s own battery, which means that the tracking device module can be generally completely hidden from view. However, popular stand alone trackers that are temporarily deployed require their own power source, which invariably is a Lithium battery pack.

Whilst micropchip and PCB technology, including antennas can now be made extremely small, the size of the battery required to power the tracking device for a useful length of time is the factor that will bloat the overall dimesnions. And the longer the battery life required, the bigger the resulting product. Small asset trackers are compact, but in plain view are clearly obvious, yet still giving a maximum deploymemnt time of say three days, wheras magnetic vehicle trackers need a much larger rechargeable battery pack, which will increase dimensions drastically whilst providing a realistic deplyment time of between three and six weeks.

So, when it comes down to invisibility these devices would seriously attract attention in plain view, however they do rely on them being hidden during the deployment. The asset trackers being more compact dimesnsionally can be tucked into a bag or secreted into a box or slotted into a thin void of whatever is being tracked to effectively make them invisible. In the case of a magnetic vehicle tracker, the fact that they can be attached to the underside of a vehicle in a position that is away from normal line of sight, again rendering them invisible when the vehicle is being used.

Effectively a tracking device is can never be invisible in the purest sense of the word because of physical size. However, there is one type of tracking system that would be regarded as invisible and this takes the form of specialist software that can be hidden into the operating system of of a smartphone, using the phone’s own battery, mapping system and battery to enable it’s use as a secret tracking App. Not all Smartphones will accept surveillance tracking Apps, but those that can be programmed in this way will leave the phone user oblivious.