Securus Technologies

Six prison systems have implemented free phone calls. A new report examines the impact of free communications.

New rules from the Federal Communications Commission are putting the brakes on the prison telecom industry’s exploitative practices.

The prison telecom giant charges more than a million incarcerated people significant fees to contact their loved ones. But twice in one week, the service was down for long periods.

On the hook to repay $1.3 billion of debt this year, the nation’s largest prison telecom company, Securus, is on the verge of bankruptcy. Its failure would represent a remarkable victory for advocates—and a potential beginning of the end for the industry as we know it.

“That video visitation is going to work,” one Genesee County official reportedly said in 2012. “A lot of people are going to swipe that Mastercard and visit their grandkids.”

Telecommunications companies that serve prisons and jails, like Securus Technologies and Global Tel Link, are offering a limited number of free calls, but families say it’s not enough.

Neither agency had written policies on how to capture or store the location data without violating privacy rights.

Phone calls between prisoners in Orange County and their lawyers were recorded and accessed. How wide the eavesdropping was remains an open question.

Defense attorneys say they were unaware of the practice and are unclear on how they can expunge the data of nonconvicted clients.

The technology also allows authorities to mine call databases and cross-reference the voices of individuals prisoners have spoken with.