On the techy side... Protest Surveillance, or How Bad Guys Eventually Get Caught

It has been interesting watching the amateur-on-the-street protest reporting on Periscope and YouTube, along with the police scanner and Filghtradar24 (to track the surveillance planes / helicopters). NYC police frequencies buzzed all week.

Here we see two helicopters and two planes circulating Philadelphia during the protest/riots (left).

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

N878ST (the red plane) belongs to the PA State Police. The others are government as well. Many of the rioters will be surprised when they are later charged.

NYPD helicopter (right) making spot checks.

Vice reports...
The Military and FBI Are Flying Surveillance Planes Over Protests
"Multiple federal agencies are flying surveillance planes over protests, and it's likely that some of these planes are outfitted with a Dirtbox or similar technology," Martin Shelton, principal researcher at Freedom of the Press Foundation told Motherboard. "What this means for protesters and journalists covering these events is that phone numbers, as well as voice calls and text messages, are likely being scooped up for analysis," he added. more

In NYC there were news helicopters mixed in throughout the week. Their soundless feeds to the newsroom could be seen on Periscope. People are monitoring in other cities as well.

Not that I think you need it, but... here is Wired's advice for when you are out there protesting.