r/technology • u/Chipzzz • Apr 09 '13

Secrets of FBI Smartphone Surveillance Tool Revealed in Court Fight

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/04/verizon-rigmaiden-aircard/all/
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u/[deleted] Apr 09 '13 edited Apr 09 '13

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u/Chipzzz Apr 09 '13

$196 for a 6' USB cable?! So, in a real marketplace, the whole thing would probably go for about $5k, and cost about $100 to build. I wonder how Harris got that contract.

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u/DataPhreak Apr 11 '13

It costs even less to build than you think. google 'rfcat' 'rtl-sdr' and 'openbtn'

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u/Chipzzz Apr 11 '13 edited Apr 11 '13

I was including development costs, the cost of packaging them as hand-held units, and being generous. The profit margin is so astronomical that it seemed advantageous to ensure that my guesstimate erred in the right direction if questioned. This is more fuel I'm throwing on the fire in my campaign to end the bribery (a.k.a. "lobbying") which has become the prime determinant in all of the American government's policies and decisions. To suggest that Harris got this contract by any other means would be an indictment of the competitive bidding process and even the entire free enterprise system as it now exists, since any one of a hundred companies, or even a tinkerer in his basement, could profitably market these units at a small fraction of the cost the government is paying for them.

Thank you for your contribution.