This is taken from Radarspotters forum,posted by one of the regular members - concerning the posting of these 'hijack alerts' and their potential consequences.
Quote:
Now that AirNav have finally seen sense and deleted the "hijack" posts from social networking websites, it's tempting to think that that's the end of the story.
Unfortunately, that may turn out not to be the case. In fact the consequences may come back to bite all of us in the longer term.
It's clear that damage has been done to the radarspotting hobby by the "hijack" story, which clearly didn't amuse the airline in question,
But there's also a frantic debate on the AirNav forum to persuade anyone who might be listening that the law hasn't been broken in this instance, and specifically that all Mode S transmissions are somehow exempt under the terms of the WTA (sorry chaps, they aren't).
Up to now, the regulator Ofcom has turned a blind eye to the use of virtual radars, as it does with scanners, and in return responsible users have kept their part of the unspoken bargain by exercising discretion in posting sensitive or sensationalist information.
I hope we don't, but I fear we may find out that this sorry episode has catapulted radarspotting into the limelight, and that Ofcom wakes up to the fact that irresponsible use of a Mode S receiver is a serious matter.
So, if we start to see more stringent controls on the sale or use of virtual radars, and much closer attention being paid to what we are doing with the information we receive, we will all know who to blame.
Thanks, AirNav.
Unquote:
