‘Birds on the wire’? Concerns over Mexico cellphone surveillance

A woman speaking on the phone outside a general hospital in Mexico City. The Mexico City area appears to have the second highest concentration of IMSI catchers of any place analysed by South Lighthouse in the Americas, after Caracas in Venezuela, according to the report published last week. — AFP

NEW YORK/MEXICO CITY: On a sunny morning dozens of protesters reeling from the coronavirus pandemic gathered in Mexico City’s central square to demand financial support, while workers rushed by with their heads buried in their phones.

What could not be seen were the signals containing reems of personal data that researchers say may have been captured by a nearby “fake antenna” to monitor passersby without their knowledge.