'My Account' - a way to store information about the phones owner, so they can be reunited if it's lost.

Ian Stirling openmoko at mauve.plus.com
Fri Mar 2 21:27:15 CET 2007


Paul Wouters wrote:
> On Thu, 1 Mar 2007, Ian Stirling wrote:
> 
>> Reflashing never gets you back a different account number, it keys off the
>> IMEI, which is not flashable. (well, perhaps it is, but it's not flashable
>> from the linux side, and AIUI, nobody else knows how at the moment.)
> 
> I really hope the IMEI number is not available to every application or even
> the kernel itself. Perhaps only when booting the phone with some special setting
> in which case it refuses to use the GSM network, so people cannot be coerced into
> enabling this identifying mark. We already went through this with the pentium
> serial number.

You don't have to use this scheme.
If you choose not to, it may be a minute - at most, reading through a 
couple of screens explaining why registering may be a good idea, and 
picking no, and 'don't bother me again.'

If anyone picks up your phone, they will simply see
"In shipping from FIC to user (delivery confirmed)" as the last entry.

The IMEI is readable out of the modem with standard AT commands.
There is even a standard across all GSM phones to get it to display it.

It's worse than you think.
When you turn the GSM module on, this number uniquely identifies your 
phone, it can be accurately tracked where you are, and 'they' can even 
make voices in your head appear. (if you answer it when they call).






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