Is sharing ADS-B data legal?

dans2992

dans2992

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Suppose you have one of the many available ADS-B receivers out there (for example piAware). This generates a web-page showing all ADS-B aircraft, and can position Mode S-only aircraft using MLAT.

Suppose you publish this data on a website. You do not block military traffic or aircraft on the FAA BARR list.

Is this legal? I'm thinking yes, since all this data is broadcast to anyone who can receive it and is unencrypted.

Does the answer change if a bunch of people pool their unfiltered data and publish it on a single website?


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dans2992 said:
Suppose you have one of the many available ADS-B receivers out there (for example piAware). This generates a web-page showing all ADS-B aircraft, and can position Mode S-only aircraft using MLAT.

Suppose you publish this data on a website. You do not block military traffic or aircraft on the FAA BARR list.

Is this legal? I'm thinking yes, since all this data is broadcast to anyone who can receive it and is unencrypted.

Does the answer change if a bunch of people pool their unfiltered data and publish it on a single website?


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I bet the DHS will call that database a "threat" to National Security and close down the site to everyone ... but.... Guvmint only access...

That way, when you land at any Podunk airport in Anystate USA,, they can mail you a landing fee...:rolleyes:.....:mad2:
 
There's no law preventing you from receiving radio signals broadcast onto your property and listening to those signals.
 
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Can't see how it could be illegal.

With flightaware, it doesn't show jack if you enter a blocked tail number though.
 
rocketflyer84 said:
There's no law preventing you from receiving radio signals broadcast onto your property and listening to those signals.
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Actually, the federal Communications Act of 1934 was often sited as the basis of legality for drivers to "receive" radar signals. IMHO. this should be the same.
 
James331 said:
Can't see how it could be illegal.

With flightaware, it doesn't show jack if you enter a blocked tail number though.
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FlightAware voluntarily blocks some data. They will block your tail number if you own the aircraft and ask them to hide the data.
 
There is law about sharing data from radio reception- see: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/47/605 (see item 6)

I interpreted it to read "receive anything you want, as long as it isn't encrypted, but don't share it"

However, it seem this seems like it isn't really prosecuted often, if at all. I'm no lawyer, and there is probably other law was well. My interpretation probably isn't correct either. I think the link is essentially the 1934 law mentioned earlier in the thread, but updated with the stuff about encryption. I also think there are some cell phone frequencies we aren't supposed to listen to as well.
 
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Cap'n Jack said:
I also think there are some cell phone frequencies we aren't supposed to listen to as well.
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In the early days of cell phones (when they were analog vs digital) anyone with a reasonably sophisticated radio receiver could just listen into the calls as they were broadcast in the clear on discrete frequencies. Same with the original cordless phones. Now they use encryption, digitized signals and more sophisticated frequency time sharing to have many devices on the same frequency.

Listening is always fine.

The "rebroadcast" bit is where it gets into the grey zone. There was a company a year or so ago that was capturing digital TV signals and then "rebroadcasting" them over the internet. The idea was, I thought, quite good. The intention was you could get your free TV signals over the Internet without having to put up your own antenna or you could get better signal if you lived in an area with poor reception. They went to extraordinary lengths to try and make it kosher, including giving each of their "subscribers" a physically separate antenna in a giant array to capture the signals. In the end they got shot down. There are powerful corporate interests that don't like others finding cheap and efficient ways to send free TV signals across a wire, lest you be able to ditch the cable company.
 
Kiddo's Driver said:
They will voluntarily block your aircraft if you pay them to...
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:rofl: So the same business model of like those "mug site photo" websites that go republish a bunch of public data and then ask for money to stop doing so.
 
Kiddo's Driver said:
They will voluntarily block your aircraft if you pay them to...
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I've blocked every plane I've owned and I haven't paid one cent.

The ASDI blocking I request is done with the FAA and at the FAA level.


https://www.nbaa.org/ops/security/asdi/


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Well, I'll let the cat out of the bag. I've been experimenting with a site that does just that. It's just an experiment/work in progress right now:

Http://adsbexchange.com



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It has a historical DB query function as well. Based on a software called "Virtual Radar Server".


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I did have mine blocked under the BARR program. Then BLOCKING DISPLAY OF AIRCRAFT SITUATION DISPLAY TO INDUSTRY (ASDI) DATA flop & twitch happened. My data became unblocked all on its own then. I guess I just have to resubmit a new form to a new group to get it reblocked. Cool!

Of course that won't do anything to block the ADS-B info that anyone can pick up with an antenna and a laptop, or from companies like this:

http://www.flightradar24.com/

They are putting up their own stations to suck the info in directly from aircraft without going through the government. And since you must broadcast your identifier (either N-Number or a FAA registered call sign) there will be no hiding...
 
ASDI block does apply to information coming out of the FAA's systems but sites like FlightAware also supplement their data feed with their own international network of ADS-B listeners. So in that case they would have to voluntarily block your information because it's not coming out of ASDI.
 
Ok, so why are there so many people sharing their ADS-B feeds in the UK. Would that not be illegal too?


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dans2992 said:
Ok, so why are there so many people sharing their ADS-B feeds in the UK. Would that not be illegal too?


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It likely is.

The UK has a lot of screwy laws about receiving radio signals. Heck you need a "license" to receive and watch free over the air TV. They actually have these TV police people that come around to people's homes to try and catch people watching TV without a license to do so. I'm totally not making this up.
 
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rocketflyer84 said:
It likely is.

The UK has a lot of screwy laws about receiving radio signals. Heck you need a "license" to receive and watch free over the air TV. They actually have these TV police people that come around to people's homes to try and catch people watching TV without a license to do so. I'm totally not making this up.
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That's crazy...

So, in this day and age when you can locate servers anywhere - what country has the most generous laws on receiving and sharing radio transmissions?
 
rocketflyer84 said:
There's no law preventing you from receiving radio signals broadcast onto your property and listening to those signals.
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Actually there are such laws albeit rarely enforced ones. That said I don't think any of the laws prohibiting reception apply to ADS-B data.
 
rocketflyer84 said:
In the early days of cell phones (when they were analog vs digital) anyone with a reasonably sophisticated radio receiver could just listen into the calls as they were broadcast in the clear on discrete frequencies. Same with the original cordless phones. Now they use encryption, digitized signals and more sophisticated frequency time sharing to have many devices on the same frequency.



Listening is always fine.
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No. Technically it's illegal to listen to the old AMPS analog cellular and receiver manufacturers of things like scanners were required to block it later on.

So listening is not "always fine", but it's a crime you'd never be caught doing.

Modern service monitors can be purchased that will listen to modern cell and cordless phones that aren't running encryption, just fine. Not THAT much money either, but not cheap enough everyone is going to have one.

Anyone who has a need to listen and quite few who don't, have them readily available in labs, and service trucks, though. They're not scarce.
 
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