AT&T has launched what it says is the “first-ever” nationwide, location-based routing for wireless 9-1-1 calls.
AT&T worked with the vendor Intrado on the technology, which uses GPS to automatically transmit wireless 9-1-1 calls to the appropriate 9-1-1 call centers on a nationwide basis.
Through this new “Locate Before Route” feature from Intrado, AT&T can quickly and accurately identify where a wireless 9-1-1 call is coming from, using device GPS to route the call to the correct 9-1-1 call center, also known as a public safety answering point (PSAP).
With location-based routing, a device can be located and routed within 50 meters of the device location.
Prior to this launch, wireless 9-1-1 calls were routed based on the location of cell towers, which can cover up to a 10-mile radius. This can cause delays in emergency response, especially when a call is made within PSAP border areas where state, county or city boundaries overlap.
No action is required by the consumer or PSAP to have this technology enabled. It is already present in all Apple and Android smartphones. An AT&T spokesperson told Fierce via email, "There is no need to deploy anything new for smartphones."
The rollout has started and is available in Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Kansas, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Guam.
The technology will be rolled out nationwide by the end of June and is currently live in several states. The first market that went live was Snohomish County, Washington.
About 68% of adults don’t have a landline in their homes. And according to the National Emergency Number Association, wireless 9-1-1 calls account for 80% of all 9-1-1 calls.
“AT&T is paving the way to create safer communities and is the only carrier to provide the most accurate solution to reduce wireless 9-1-1 call transfers beyond what the FCC is requiring carriers today,” the carrier said in a statement.
Asked if other carriers are working with Intrado, the vendor didn’t directly reply. The AT&T spokesperson said, “Given the longstanding collaboration of innovation between AT&T and Intrado, AT&T is currently the only carrier with whom Intrado is rolling out this technology.”
GPS and location privacy
A few years ago, there was a bit of a scandal in the wireless industry when some investigative reporters at Motherboard learned that real-time, location-based data from telecom companies had been sold to bail bond companies.
The location data from carriers, including T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint, was captured by a so-called location aggregator, which then sold that data to a number of different companies, including bounty hunters and bail bondsmen, enabling them to find the real-time location of mobile phones. There were some scary stories of people being stalked and having their privacy invaded.
The AT&T spokesperson today said that the handset location data used for Location Based Routing is only used when a caller places a 9-1-1 call. A 9-1-1 caller’s location is only shared with public safety professionals at the PSAP, and the data is delivered via dedicated links to the PSAP. The data does not traverse the open internet.
She said the location processing is not used for tracking purposes and is only triggered when a caller places a 9-1-1 call. This data cannot be used by AT&T or others to track individuals.