◆ SpookStack

ition and has failed to pass in the} two years it has been Pend ma As px-courtant leral ws, re are as many inter- ipretations as there are courts) land judges. Some judges hold wiretapping a crime in itself, while others hold it ‘illegal only lif the intercepted messages are’ ALABAMA, LIKE 32 other| states, has laws making wire- tapping a crime punishable by, tapping or interferring with telephone communication is a misdemeanor punishable by a: $500 fine or six months in jail, lor both. Eleven states have no laws at all governing wiretapping or| recorded telephone conversa- tions. Six states permit wire- tapping — but confine its legal} use mainly to law enforcement. | ~ The threat to privacy is by Ino means limited to monitored phone conversations. A child can: order through the mail a $15 device which magnifies sound and can pick up a conversation in-a room across the street. For $17.90, anyone can have lan instrument which “taps” a telephone without touching a wire. i For $150, a budding spy can} buy a television camera which lcan scan a room in complete secrecy and transmit pictures, with, sound, to a hidden receiv- jer several blocks away. PRIVATE DETECTIVES con- cea} microphones, some with! built-in transmitters, in hat-| bands, wrist watches or tie] clasps. Microphones, no larger than a button, feeds conversa-) tions to a recorder concealed on ithe detective’s person, then re- lays it to a receiver several, blocks away. . Tiny transmitters can be in- stalled in rooms, offices and) even automobiles. They:are pow- erful enough to send conversa- tiops several blocks to several. miles. w Even executives have reached: the point where they fidget if a visit much as sets a briefcase or purse near them. ' Although it is extremely dif- ficult,” “most “telephone bugging devices can be detected. - Lingg said the is no spe cial equipment ter revealing the presence of a bug, Ped added the devices can and oft-, en do betray themselves. In all the three cases here in Alabama, the bugs malfunc. tioned and caused trouble on the telephone lines. In Miss Poole’s case, there was a buzzing on the line even after a number had been dialed. ~ The two bugs installed in Bir- Imingham homes caused other conversations to “leak” through.’ In other words, the user of the bugged phone, could hear other people talking while they tried to carry on their own conversa- tions.. Sometimes, a malfunctioning bug will cause interrupted dial- ing or other oddities in the phone’s operation. A PERSON WHO suspects his Phone has been tapped can easi- ly’ relieve his mind by asking the telephone company to check his line, If the repairman finds a “voltage drop” on the line, it jis almost certain the phone is ‘being tapped somehow. All bugs aren't detectable how- ever. For example anyone can be recorded by the person on the other end of the line without de- tection. Anyone suspecting his con- versation is being recorded, can foul the recording by sim- ply tapping the mouthpiece of the phone with a pencil or oth- er objects during the conver- sation. The noise will magnify and blot out parts of the con- versation. « Similar results can be _ob- tained by other noises in” the room, such as music, a loud television or even running wa- ter. Devices for recording tele- iphone conversations are ex- tremely sensitive and will mag- inify the slightest ‘noise. 4 ABOVE ALL, Col. Lingo lwarned, make sure the man who" comes to check for ter- Imites orto check your phone is who he says he is — ask for! crédertials, If he has none, check with ‘his office. Don’t let, unidentified people in -your: home. ‘There was a time when secret 1A eee cane em eg pome . it with insulation, This particular bug cost ‘Bugs’ in Birmingham hom« This tiny transmitter (top photo) was found at- tached to the telephone wire in the,home of a pri- vate citizen in Birmingham. The miniature device is transistorized, has its own power supply and meas- ures about 2% by 1 inches. It is tuned to a certain frequency and is capable of. transmitting both ends of a telephone conversation several blocks, Photo be- low shows how the transmitter was installed in the Birmingham home. Someone entered the basement iss key, connected the device, then con cealed t “between $150 and $250. een ne was filched with the fica St , Women and mi nt fica — that time is lof Today it’s done far. me tifically, and forms a ff ter threat to freedom of acy than ever before, ci