Supreme Court Requires Warrants for Cell Searches, But won’t Protect Internet Streaming

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http://www.juancole.com/2014/06/searches-internet-streaming.html

Justices Rule Changing Technology Demands Limits for Police but Requires Permission from TV Broadcasters

Supreme Court Requires Warrants for Cell Searches, But won’t Protect Internet Streaming
By contributors | Jun. 26, 2014
Via Electronic Frontier Foundation

San Francisco – The U.S. Supreme Court issued two big rulings in important technology cases today.

In a groundbreaking decision on cell phone privacy, the court set powerful limits for police searches of cell phones, ruling in two consolidated cases that law enforcement must get a warrant before accessing the data on an arrested person’s cell phone. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed amicus briefs in both of the cell phone search cases that were at issue in today’s decision.

“These decisions are huge for digital privacy,” EFF Staff Attorney Hanni Fakhoury said. “The court recognized that the astounding amount of sensitive data stored on modern cell phones requires heightened privacy protection, and cannot be searched at a police officer’s whim. This should have implications for other forms of government electronic searches and surveillance, tightening the rules for police behavior and preserving our privacy rights in our increasingly digital world.”

In its opinion, the court confirmed the importance of the warrant requirement, writing “Our answer to the question of what police must do before searching a cell phone seized incident to an arrest is accordingly simple—get a warrant.”