It's common practice posting one's call sign at ham sites and I don't see much harm in that,
but at prep sites, where you wouldn't normally want your name & address accompanying
all your posts there, it'd probably be best not to use your call sign there either, with how
easily they can be looked up to reveal your name, address and a map to your front door.
It's just not anything that I worry about. I live in a rural location, and most people around here are preppers, and most don't even realize it. We all raise animals, grow gardens, hunt, preserve our own food by canning, dehydrating, etc. We have big dogs and we have children and wives that shoot as well (or better, in most instances) than we do. I live a half mile off of a dirt road, and you can't see the antennas from the road. For that matter, we don't even have a name or number on the mail box, 'cause we all know where everyone lives.
Quote from: MIA on September 03, 2012, 12:39:58 AM
It's just not anything that I worry about. I live in a rural location, and most people around here are preppers, and most don't even realize it. We all raise animals, grow gardens, hunt, preserve our own food by canning, dehydrating, etc. We have big dogs and we have children and wives that shoot as well (or better, in most instances) than we do. I live a half mile off of a dirt road, and you can't see the antennas from the road. For that matter, we don't even have a name or number on the mail box, 'cause we all know where everyone lives.
That's great, but my point was that for any that would hesitate to put their name & address at
the bottom of their posts here, or anywhere for that matter, they might oughta think twice before
posting their call sign there, too, cause it's essentially the same thing, even if one can't see antennas
or mailboxes, if they have the address, looked up from a call sign, google map then shows/tells all.
BTW, my concern is less about ham radio operators being an attractive target and more about what
they might inadvertently reveal about their preps on-line erroneously thinking they were doing so
anonymously and safely, when they really were not at all if they had also included their call sign.
I completely agree. After I got my license, it quickly sunk in that if I jump on the online camaraderie thing and post my call sign, I have violated OPSEC. Really torn over this as it seems counterproductive in pure HAM terms, but makes overall security sense.
Quote from: ScottHW on September 03, 2012, 07:52:36 AM
I completely agree. After I got my license, it quickly sunk in that if I jump on the online camaraderie thing and post my call sign, I have violated OPSEC. Really torn over this as it seems counterproductive in pure HAM terms, but makes overall security sense.
For me, I don't have any problem using my call sign at ham sites that talk about typical (non security sensitive) ham stuff.
If somebody wanted to target hams, just cause they were hams, which I don't rank or worry about as a very high threat,
they could look up and see all those registered in any county of their choice.
It's just where I need to stay anonymous on-line to speak freely, like at prep, gun and hard money sites, that I don't post
my call sign there.
If you are truly worried that some nefarious characters will arrive on your doorstep to try and take your preps, then by all means don't post a call sign or any information that may identify you. All I am saying is that I am not worried about that prospect. I personally don't believe that people searching online forums to find preppers will be a problem for the vast majority of us. There certainly could be someone compiling a list of those near them now, but city folks may have more to worry about in that case.
I'm of the opinion that if the SHTF in such a way that the ROL has broken down to the point where people would be attacking you for your preps, then the internet would probably be history also. In my particular area, the "bad guys" would certainly find themselves in a world of hurt. I have a 200 yard field of fire in any direction from the house, although I may have to shoot through a couple of rows of corn to the south... ;)
YMMV
I guess it depends on the site. I can always send my call-sign to an individual member via a PM...
Quote from: MIA on September 03, 2012, 11:45:45 AM
I personally don't believe that people searching online forums to find preppers will be a problem for the vast majority of us. There certainly could be someone compiling a list of those near them now, but city folks may have more to worry about in that case.
I keep a spreadsheet with the names, addresses, and sometimes phone numbers of all the hams in the counties surrounding mine. Also do an occasional full site rip of local ham clubs websites, some have their member call up information there as well. Some are also kind enough to provide their repeater models, in which case I also search that to find the instruction/maintenance manual for it which will often list the DTMF control codes. Never know, the information might come in handy some day.
Seriously. Don't be an idiot -- putting your callsign anywhere on an unsecured site with untrusted wild users like this one is just a really dumb idea.
You won't find my call anywhere near this place.
Quote from: Scott on September 05, 2012, 12:32:41 AM
Seriously. Don't be an idiot -- putting your callsign anywhere on an unsecured site with untrusted wild users like this one is just a really dumb idea.
You won't find my call anywhere near this place.
Ummm... OK
Well -
For me, I have lees than the average home for someone wanting to steal. The largest threat that I can forsee are the huge number of 'entitlement' types, going without two meals after the government checks stop. THEN they hop in their shiny , chrome covered cars to go 'grazing' on the rest of society in person, rather than indirectly by taxation. Like some here, I live waaaya back on a single lane remote country road which is isolated from the rest of the world by a few water crossings on one side and a mile of open water on the other. If 'they' are coming here to steal my TV - I don't own one. For food, they can wait for the harvest, because nature cannot be rushed and my experience is that most of those guys prefer KFC or McDonalds to vegetables and rice, with occasional meat or fish, which is how I eat.
"They" also face the problem of a bunch of armed citizens, most of whom are veterans and know every car and face that "belongs" in this area. Never under estimate the power of 50 old guys with combat experience and rifles defending their families. Napolian said that a man defending his family is worth ten professional troops on the assault - and he should know. Looters are worth less than troops on the assault. Once mobilized, that gives us about five rifle companies worth of actual fighting power to defend one skinny, two lane road and to rotate sentries on the water. Remember too: Looters are not valiant soldiers, willing to die for their objective - we are.
As for my callsign and Google searches - it's a fact. I've made my decision.
de Ray
W7ASA ..._ ._
Your call sign and address is public record. Anybody can find that information. When it comes to prep items, most people have more food and guns than I do. Guess I just don't worry that much about a confrontation. My main worry is weather prep. The ability to take care of ourselves when there is a major storm or power outage.
I may be wrong, I can't kill another human fighting over a can of beans or someone stealing my TV.
If someone thinks about harming my family, that will be a very different story!!!
73'S KA5SIW
You can renew/change your call sign and use a P.O. box.
Posting your call sign that leads to your name and address on an internet forum is nuts, prepper or not. There are a lot of reasons to try to keep your personal info off these forums as much as possible, worrying about someone taking your prepping supplies after the SHTF is the least of them..
I would suggest to anyone getting their license is to get a P.O. Box and apply for their FCC FRN number prior to going for your exam. Even with a P.O. box your name and town are posted on our friendly FCC site, idiots.
Idiots!, on one site the gubmint tells us how important it is to safeguard your personal information while on another site they give it away, idiots!
Gambrinus, I agree. Posting addresses is ridiculous, borderline criminal. Oh well, it will stay there until someone sues. You can't get an address from a license plate, why a call sign?
I will not be posting mine here or on any other web site...
Gil.
I have discussed this with Gil, and he has made his sympathies on the subject known - one thing that could be done to offer a little more OPSEC, and it could be done simply (which is often the best remedy)...is to simply rent a PO box and list it as your main address in the USL database?
This is what I plan to do when I register - it is perfectly legal - and would offer some level of security from "creepers" and/or identity thieves!
...I for one have never understood why this needs to be public information? I mean, it doesn't even lend itself to modifying behavior, or even self-policing? Because - at least as far as I can tell - there isn't any countermeasure for unscrupulous persons simply "borrowing" a call sign in order to make mayhem..!? and as far as I know, criminals still don't mind doing things illegally...
...nope, just keep shaking my head over this one...
Well, at least I can make sure the unscrupulous one's...don't "borrow" the contents of my home address...
I've thought about this before and (as can be seen) made my decision awhile back, albeit not for the reasons here. I have a PO Box simply because I've always had one in this town. Based on delivery times (late afternoon) and traffic route to/from work I can get my mail quicker in my comings & goings. I can always give the physical to a UPS inbound.
I think it's counter-productive to obsess about what the G makes publicly available at this point & distracts from something that can be leveraged in our favor. Those same FCC station & frequency assignments apply for others; that's why you can get all the assigned G/g frequencies in your area for LE (including TAC frequencies), Fire, Public Works, etc. They make nice additions to one's scanner table.
In my work when we do a threat assessment we have to look at CREDIBLE threat, not all POSSIBLE threats, lest we chase tails pursuing that which gains us little benefit at much expense & headache. We look at the most likely man-initiated event with most impact, and the most natural event with the most impact. Everyone has to do their own. PO boxes can be nice. In fact, if UPS ever opened up a full-service box store like they have at other population centers I'd ditch the PO entirely since I see they've been allowed to default on yet another $5B payment.
Work whatever approach works for you but know this:
There is risk/reward and if you ever want to get in QSO with me for training purposes within the current structure you're going to be giving your G-given callsign, and you'll get mine in happily in exchange. We have no homeowner org's in my little burg so if you think you can come to my general area and look at all the beams on masts w/rotors and all the 43' verticals atop Rohn masts and find my house specifically, have at it. Lots of neighborly overwatch and gun-clinging goin' on.
Otherwise let's just go back to credible approaches to preparation. Fewer people are listening to your amateur radio comms than are simply watching internet fora. Laptops are cheap; knowledge & radio gear not so much. As a former CO said about a unit from PR that complained about the temp up here in May being too cold, "shut up & train." (Miss that guy alot.)
[\curmudgeon off]
:)
FYI, most people look up your stuff on qrz.com and don't navigate to the FCC ULS database. At qrz.com you can edit your own page to show no coords, no map, your physical, some other location, etc. (Snowbirds do this for example.)
Quoteif you ever want to get in QSO with me for training purposes
I will take you up on that! CW, any time you're willing :)
I need to get from 8wpm copy to 20...
Gil.
I'm afraid I look at it in another way. That lock on my door is to protect -you-, not me...
- Paul
Quote from: Paul on September 30, 2012, 11:47:54 AM
I'm afraid I look at it in another way. That lock on my door is to protect -you-, not me...
- Paul
Quite agree; not saying don't use due diligence. Locks save lives & not necessarily those inside.
Quote from: gil on September 30, 2012, 11:07:36 AM
Quoteif you ever want to get in QSO with me for training purposes
I will take you up on that! CW, any time you're willing :)
I need to get from 8wpm copy to 20...
Gil.
Would be my pleasure. Starting in a few minutes kinda busy today but use PM & let me know what kinda days/times/freqs work well for you. You can also just shoot me an email, address at top of my QRZ page.
I'm always dusting the cobwebs off, CW is for me a really perishable skill. I hit a "wall" at about 12 for quite awhile. While I can do a simple DX exchange much faster, conversational CW is more fun and I always like to practice good CW that gets it done the first time. So whatever speed
you're comfortable with you tell me (unless you tell me you wanna re-trans "War & Peace" at 30wpm). If you say 8, 10, whatever, that's what we'll do, and with a smile. To do otherwise is what I call "writing a check your brass can't cash."
Let me know, we'll hookup at some point. It need not be long - just keep the cobwebs off for both of us, and at my age I make enough of my own.
;D
So, CW is kinda like Twitter?
Only your limits aren't wpm, there 120 characters, max
hmmm, on second thought, maybe Twitter is more like JT65...?