Is cell phone communication safe? According to a 2010 survey by the CDC (Center For Disease Control), 26.6% of US families only use cell phones at home (Blumberg). With so many people depending on cell phones for communications, it's important to understand the security risks they face. Cell phone communication is not completely safe but the risk depends on a variety of variables, user habits, interception points and user vigilance. Legally, no one should listen to cell phone calls, but it happens. In April 1994, the Federal Communications Commission “determined that no radio scanners capable of picking up the frequencies used by cellular telephones, or that could be easily modified to receive such frequencies, may be manufactured or imported into the United States. (47 CFR Part 15.37(f))(Information Sheet). “Another federal law, the Counterfeit Access Devices Act, was amended to make it illegal to use a radio scanner “knowingly and with intent to defraud” to intercept wire or electronic communications. (18 USC 1029) Penalties for intentional interception of cordless and cellular telephone calls range from fines to imprisonment depending on the circumstances. (18 USC 2511, 2701)” (Fact Sheet). User Security Two of the most common preventable breaches to secure calls have to do with the ease of use and portability of cell phones. As people have become more comfortable having conversations in public, many people talk on their cell phones as if they were alone with no one able to hear. They may not think about security when speaking to someone who asks for verification using their Social Security number, date of birth, or other personal information. Another common problem is pocket calls. An article on In...... middle of paper ......ion (EFF). “What can I do to protect myself?”. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Surveillance self-defense. Network. October 29, 2011"Fact Sheet 2: Wireless Communications: Voice and Data Privacy." Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Revised August 2011. Web. August 29, 2011. Grimes, Roger A. “Inadvertent Phone Calls Put Privacy at Risk.” World of information. 15 June 20101. Web. 29 October 2011. Valentine, Vishnu. “Vodafone hacked – Root password published” Vishnu Valentino: Blog. Network. August 29, 2011.Walker, Michael. "On the security of 3GPP networks." International Association for Cryptographic Research. Network. October 29, 2011.Walter, Vic and Krista Kjellman. “Can you hear me now?” ABC News Investigative. December 5, 2006. Web. October 29, 2011. Wikipedia. Zetter, Kim. “Hacker spoofs cell tower to intercept calls.” Wired. 31 July 2010. Web. 29 October 2011.