No? If the device is connected to a cell, they can still triangulate it just like normal.

roywiggins 17 hours ago | parent | next [-]

In an emergency you might really want GPS precision.

Which emergency can happen that I really want this? And now don't say suicide attempt. Nearby all emergencies that could happen where someone needs my exact position are things that would additionally lead to a loss of the base connection or a switched off smart phone.

	▲	sib 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Car accident? Broken leg while hiking? Mugging? Slip and fall on icy sidewalk?

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mcculley 17 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Cell tower triangulation does not provide the same precision as GPS.

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benSaiyen 14 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Triangulation does not provide granularity needed for emergency response.

You want EMS looking for a needle in a haystack while you are suffering a heart attack?

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ssl-3 12 hours ago | parent [-]

Indeed.

How might people suggest that this would work, do you suppose?

"We've narrowed the victim's location down to one city block, boys! Assemble a posse and start knocking on doors: If they don't answer, kick it in!" ?

(And before anyone says "Well, it can work however it used to work!" please remember: Previously, we had landline phones in our homes. When we called 0118 999 881 999 119 725 3 for emergency services, there was a database that linked the landline to a street address and [if applicable] unit.

That doesn't work anymore because, broadly-speaking, we now have pocket supercomputers instead of landlines.)

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benSaiyen 12 hours ago | parent [-]

We also had phone books with everyone's name and address listed.

Everyone was effectively doxxed yet it was never a security issue.

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ssl-3 12 hours ago | parent [-]

Sure. But we usually didn't need it: We kept the phone numbers for our friends, family, and our favorite pizza place memorized.

And if the phone rang, it was answered. It was almost certainly a real person calling; spam calls were infrequent to the point of almost never happening.

It was a different time, and it is lost to us now.

(We do still have public name-to-address databases, though. For instance: In my state of Ohio, that part of a person's voter registration is public information that anybody can access. Everyone is still effectively doxxed and it's still not a security issue.)

	▲	benSaiyen 11 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Oh right. Forgot registered voter records are public. Similar to your point about phonebooks, I never use them.