EFF Tweet1Then I realized that the US Supreme Court had ruled that cell phone location information is a violation of the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution.2When it came to protecting the child, the verdict was close, 5 to 4, but it seems that the child was protected.
Articles are already starting to appear here and there.
- USA Today: Supreme Court cracks down on government snooping through cellphone location records
- NBC News: Supreme Court says police can't use your cellphone to track you without a court order
This ruling is in line with the recent recognition in the United States that "the rapid development of technology has made it impossible to protect privacy through traditional methods," and has already been ruled in the U.S. that "vehicles cannot be tracked using GPS devices without a warrant."3"You can't search a cell phone without a warrant.4" This seems to be an extension of the ruling.
According to Chief Justice John Robert, obtaining a time series of mobile phone location data:
- Cars can be driven away, but mobile phones are often mandatory.
- With your phone in hand, you pass by hospitals, private homes, political campaign headquarters, etc. This location information exposes privacy.
In these respects, it poses a greater privacy risk than tracking a car with GPS, which is why this decision was made.
footnote
- https://t.co/sOSqGUFGCx
- FixFirst4 article The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated. Warrants shall issue only upon probable cause supported by oath or affirmation, and shall particularly describe the place to be searched, and the persons to be arrested or things to be seized.
- GPS equipment to track vehicles
- search cellphones without a warrant