US supreme court hears whether smartphone location data warrants infringe users’ privacy
Summary
The US Supreme Court is hearing a case about whether broad warrants for smartphone location data violate Americans’ privacy rights under the Constitution. The case involves a man whose location data from a “geofence warrant” was used by police to identify him near a crime scene, raising questions about privacy and the legality of this warrant type.Key Facts
- The Supreme Court heard arguments in Chatrie v United States about the use of “geofence warrants.”
- Geofence warrants require tech companies to give police data on all phones within a specific area and time, not just specific suspects.
- Okello Chatrie’s phone location helped police catch him after a 2019 armed bank robbery in Virginia.
- Chatrie pleaded guilty, but his lawyers say the evidence from the geofence warrant should not have been allowed.
- The Department of Justice argues people have no privacy expectation in their public movements captured by smartphones.
- Privacy advocates warn that geofence warrants can unfairly include innocent bystanders’ data.
- Google had a “location history” feature that saved users’ locations, which police used in this case.
- Google has since changed how it stores location data to resist complying with broad geofence warrants.
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