In Major Privacy Win, Supreme Court Rules Police Need Warrant To Track Your Cellphone

June 22, 201810:41 AM ET

Cellphone providers routinely keep location information for customers to help improve service. And until now, the prevailing legal theory was that if an individual voluntarily shares his information with a third party — for instance, by signing up for cellphone service — police can get that information without a search warrant.

On Friday, the Supreme Court blew a hole in that theory. Writing for the court majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said that cellphone location information is a “near perfect” tool for government surveillance, analogous to an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet.

While Friday’s decision may limit the government’s access to cellphone data, it has no impact on the ability of private companies to amass, use and sell their customers’ information. That is because the Fourth Amendment only limits government conduct, not private conduct. Only Congress, in enacting legislation, can limit how private companies amass and use information.

see also:
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/12/03/power-privacy-internet/

Aral Balkan: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/lib290/2018/03/01/duckduckgo-privacy-free-service/
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more on privacy and surveillance in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=privacy

https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=surveillance