Local Police
- Anchorage Police Department
Stingray Tracking Devices: Who's Got Them?
[Updated November 2018]
The map below tracks what we know, based on press reports and publicly available documents, about the use of stingray tracking devices by state and local police departments. Following the map is a list of the federal agencies known to have the technology. The ACLU has identified 75 agencies in 27 states and the District of Columbia that own stingrays, but because many agencies continue to shroud their purchase and use of stingrays in secrecy, this map dramatically underrepresents the actual use of stingrays by law enforcement agencies nationwide.
Stingrays, also known as "cell site simulators" or "IMSI catchers," are invasive cell phone surveillance devices that mimic cell phone towers and send out signals to trick cell phones in the area into transmitting their locations and identifying information. When used to track a suspect's cell phone, they also gather information about the phones of countless bystanders who happen to be nearby.
Map Data:
Show map dataAlaska
Local police have cell site simulators
Alabama
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Arkansas
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Arizona
Local police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Tucson Police Department
- Maricopa County Sheriff: "'Stingray' Phone Tracker Fuels Constitutional Clash" (Wall Street Journal)
- Tempe
- Gilbert Police Department (Possible)
- Phoenix Police Department (Center for Human Rights and Privacy)
- Scottsdale Police Department (Center for Human Rights and Privacy)
California
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- San Diego Police Department: "Local police dealt with company that makes controversial cellphone tracking technology" (ABC News 10)
- San Jose Police Department, Oakland Police Department, San Diego Sheriff's Department, San Francisco Police Department, Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, Los Angeles Police Department, and Sacramento County Sheriff: "9 Calif. law enforcement agencies connected to cellphone spying technology" (ABC News 10)
- Los Angeles Police Department: "LAPD Spy Device Taps Your Cell Phone" (LA Weekly)
- San Bernadino County Sheriff: "Law enforcement officials: Cell phone disclosures would hurt investigations" (Desert Sun)
- Ventura County Sheriff (Center for Human Rights and Privacy)
- Anaheim Police Department (ACLU of Northern California)
State Police
- California Department of Justice (Center for Human Rights and Privacy)
Colorado
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Connecticut
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
District of Columbia
Local police have cell site simulators
Delaware
State police have cell site simulators
State Police
- Delaware State Police (FOIA Response to Mike Katz-Lacabe)
Florida
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Miami-Dade Police Department: "Cell-phone tracking: Miami cops know where you are" (Miami New Times)
- City of Miami Police Department
- Sunrise Police Department
State Police
- Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE loans cell site simulators to local and county police departments throughout the state)
Hawaii
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Idaho
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Illinois
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Chicago Police Department: "Lawsuit seeks details on Chicago Police purchases of cellular tracking gear" (Chicago Sun-Times)
- After Denials Chicago Police Department Admits Purchase Of Cell-Phone Spying Devices (CBS Chicago)
State Police
- Illinois State Police
Indiana
Local and state police have cell site simulators
State Police
- Indiana State Police: "Indiana State Police tracking cellphones — but won't say how or why" (Indianapolis Star)
Local Police
- Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (Muckrock)
Iowa
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Kansas
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Kentucky
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Louisiana
State police have cell site simulators
State Police
- Louisiana Attorney General: 9News Investigators: Phishing in your phone (WAFB)
Maine
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Maryland
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Montgomery County
- Baltimore
- Baltimore County: "Baltimore Co. Police Used Secretive Phone-Tracking Technology 622 Times" (Baltimore Sun)
- Anne Arundel County I & II
- Prince George's County: "Asset Seizures Fuel Police Spending" (Washington Post)
- Annapolis: Battlefield Technology Gets Spotlight in Maryland Courts (Capital News Service)
- Hartford County (Capital News Service)
- Howard County: Battlefield Technology Gets Spotlight in Maryland Courts (Capital News Service)
State Police
- Maryland State Police
Massachusetts
Local police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Boston Police Department (via Center for Human Rights and Privacy)
Michigan
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Oakland County Sheriff: "Secret military device lets Oakland deputies track cellphones" (Detroit News)
State Police
Minnesota
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Hennepin County Sheriff: "This time, Stanek lands KingFish phone tracker" (Star Tribune)
State Police
- Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension: "BCA still keeps quiet about cell tracking technology----admit have Stingray" (Open Secrets)
Mississippi
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Missouri
Local police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Kansas City Police Department: "Secret cellphone tracking device used by police stings civil libertarians" (Kansas City Star)
Montana
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Nebraska
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Nevada
Local police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (CityLab)
New Hampshire
State police have cell site simulators
State Police
-New Hampshire State Police (Muckrock)
New Jersey
State police have cell site simulators
New York
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- New York City Police Department (NYPD) (New York Civil Liberties Union)
- Erie County Sheriff: "Erie Co. Sheriff Spent $350,000 To Spy On Cell Phones" (WGRZ TV)
- Rochester Police Department (New York Civil Liberties Union)
State Police
- New York State Police: "Local Police Agencies Have Devices to Spy on Cell Phones" (WGRZ TV)
North Carolina
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Charlotte Police Department I & II
- Durham Police Department
- Raleigh Police Department: "Raleigh, Durham police using device that tracks cellphone data" (WRAL)
- Wilmington Police Department
- New Hanover Sheriff's Department (Daily Dot)
State Police
- North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (Daily Dot)
North Dakota
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Ohio
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Oklahoma
State police have cell site simulators
State Police
- Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs: Okla. Authorities Have or Use Controversial Cellphone Tracker (Oklahoma Watch)
Oregon
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Pennsylvania
State police have cell site simulators
State Police
- Pennsylvania State Police: "Confirmed: PA State Police Purchased Controversial StingRay Surveillance Technology Last Year" (The Declaration)
Rhode Island
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
South Carolina
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
South Dakota
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Tennessee
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Memphis Police Department
- "MPD May Be Using New Data Collection Program" (LocalMemphis.com)
State Police
- Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
Texas
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Fort Worth Police Department: "Fort Worth Cellphone Tracker Rings Controversy" (NBC 5)
- Houston Police Department
State Police
- Texas Department of Public Safety: "APD: Can We Please Buy Some Top-Secret 'Stingrays'?" (Austin Chronicle)
Utah
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Vermont
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Virginia
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Alexandria Police Department
- Chesterfield Police Department
- Fairfax County Police Department: "DC, Maryland, and Virginia cops spying on cell phone data" (WUSA 9)
State Police
- Virginia State Police (Muckrock)
Washington State
Local police have cell site simulators
Local Police:
- Tacoma Police Department: Documents: Tacoma Police Using Surveillance Device to Sweep Up Cellphone Data (News Tribune)
West Virginia
Police use of cell site simulators unknown
Wisconsin
Local and state police have cell site simulators
Local Police
- Milwaukee Police Department: "State cops can track residents' cellphones" (Post Crescent)
State Police
- Wisconsin Department of Justice: "State cops can track residents' cellphones" (Gannett Wisconsin)
Wyoming
Police use of cell site simulators unknown