In Missouri, some community advocates have raised questions about the security apparatus surrounding the Chillicothe-area Correctional Center (CRCC) and other MDOC facilities. These questions do not assert proven wrongdoing, but they highlight a growing anxiety: Is surveillance technology intended for prisons beginning to seep into everyday life?

1. MmWave Surveillance: From Contraband Scanner to Remote Sensor

How These Systems Are Intended to Work

Millimeter-wave systems—similar to the scanners used in airports—emit high-frequency radio waves capable of penetrating clothing and detecting objects based on reflected energy patterns. In prisons, these tools are typically used:

• At facility entrances

• For inmate screening

• For contraband detection

• To reduce invasive physical searches

They serve legitimate safety purposes.
But mmWave technology is also powerful—more powerful than many members of the public realize.

The “Under-the-Skirt” Debate

Civil-rights groups have long warned that full-body scanning technologies blur the line between security and privacy violation, especially when deployed without clear regulation. Early-generation airport scanners raised “virtual strip search” controversies; modern mmWave devices can operate at greater distances, with higher resolution, and with less visible hardware.

While there is no public evidence that Missouri’s Department of Corrections or CRCC is misusing mmWave radar on the general public, advocates argue that oversight rules remain incomplete—and that technology with the ability to image under clothing should never be deployed near civilians without strict legal safeguards, if at all.

2. mmSpy: A Stark Warning From Research Laboratories

A parallel research development has intensified these fears.

The mmSpy Proof-of-Concept Attack

Researchers at Penn State University recently demonstrated a startling capability known as mmSpy, which shows how off-the-shelf mmWave radar can be repurposed for audio eavesdropping:

• Mechanism: The system transmits continuous FMCW (Frequency-Modulated Carrier Wave) signals.

• Detection: mmWave’s extremely short wavelengths (approx. 4 mm) make it possible to read micrometer-level vibrations—such as those produced by a phone’s earpiece during a call.

• Reconstruction: The reflected phase variations are processed using advanced signal processing and machine-learning models.

• Results:

  • ~83% accuracy when classifying spoken digits at a distance of one foot

  • ~44% accuracy at six feet

The Implications

The attack requires no physical contact, no malware, and no microphone.
It uses motion alone.

The researchers warn that this could expose extremely sensitive personal information, such as:

• One-time passwords

• Credit-card numbers

• Private phone conversations

• Medical or legal information

mmSpy was never intended as a deployable surveillance tool—its purpose is to warn the public that mmWave hardware, if misused, could become a window into personal conversations, even in noisy environments where a traditional microphone would fail.

3. Public Worries Surrounding Correctional Agencies

Why Correctional Facilities Are Part of the Conversation

Correctional agencies often:

• Deploy advanced imaging systems

• Purchase off-the-shelf radio-frequency surveillance tools

• Operate in high-security environments

• Function under less public transparency than municipal police

This combination fuels concern—but not proof—about the potential misuse of mmWave systems outside prison walls.

Some Missouri residents near CRCC have described experiencing aggressive perimeter security measures, including visible and invisible scanning devices, though the specific capabilities and the policies governing them remain unclear to the public. Privacy groups argue that the lack of mandated public reporting creates a vacuum where suspicion can spread.

To date, there is no publicly verified evidence that MDOC or CRCC has deployed mmWave systems against civilians.

But advocates insist that the possibility alone demands urgent policy clarification.

4. The Real Issue: Regulation Is Lagging Behind Technology

Whether in Missouri or anywhere else in the U.S., the fundamental problem remains the same:

Millimeter-wave surveillance technologies are advancing faster than the laws that govern them.

Most states have:

• No statutes regulating passive radar surveillance

• No oversight mechanisms for mmWave deployment on public property

• No clear restrictions on using mmWave systems to detect micro-movement or clothing-penetrating imagery

• No disclosure requirements when agencies acquire such systems

Without regulation, the line between “security screening” and “remote surveillance” becomes dangerously thin.

5. Experts Call for Immediate Safeguards

Researchers working in mmWave sensing stress that any technology capable of micro-motion detection, biometric analysis, or clothing-penetrating imaging must be:

• Regulated like wiretaps

• Banned from public deployment without judicial approval

• Subject to strict data-retention rules

• Transparent in acquisition

• Auditable by independent oversight committees

The mmSpy proof-of-concept made one thing clear:
These devices are no longer simple scanners—some are becoming remote-sensing platforms capable of extracting intimate personal information.

Conclusion: A Call for Transparency, Not Assumptions

There is no publicly verified evidence that the Missouri Department of Corrections or the CRCC facility uses mmWave systems to spy on civilians. What does exist is:

• A dramatic rise in powerful mmWave technologies

• Proven research showing these devices can be repurposed for invasive surveillance

• A lack of public transparency surrounding government use

• Growing calls for legislative and public oversight

• Communities near correctional facilities asking for clearer answers

In a democratic society, the public has a right to know what technologies are being deployed, how they work, and what safeguards exist to prevent abuse.

Until those answers are publicly available, the shadow cast by mmWave surveillance will only grow longer.

Informants & sources cited: 

https://www.corrections1.com/correctional-healthcare/like-an-extra-set-of-eyes-ky-jails-use-new-technology-to-help-monitor-inmates-health

Crossroads correctional facilities: 

> Walker McCracken

> Matt Jessmer

> Jamon Bartlet 

> Steven W. (Stephen?)