*Michigan: Police Search Cell Phones During Traffic Stops*
ACLU seeks information on Michigan program that allows cops to download
information from smart phones belonging to stopped motorists.
CelleBriteThe Michigan State Police have a high-tech mobile forensics
device that can be used to extract information from cell phones
belonging to motorists stopped for minor traffic violations. The
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan last Wednesday
demanded that state officials stop stonewalling freedom of information
requests for information on the program.
ACLU learned that the police had acquired the cell phone scanning
devices and in August 2008 filed an official request for records on the
program, including logs of how the devices were used. The state police
responded by saying they would provide the information only in return
for a payment of $544,680. The ACLU found the charge outrageous.
"Law enforcement officers are known, on occasion, to encourage citizens
to cooperate if they have nothing to hide," ACLU staff attorney Mark P.
Fancher wrote. "No less should be expected of law enforcement, and the
Michigan State Police should be willing to assuage concerns that these
powerful extraction devices are being used illegally by honoring our
requests for cooperation and disclosure."
A US Department of Justice test of the CelleBrite UFED used by Michigan
police found the device could grab all of the photos and video off of an
iPhone within one-and-a-half minutes. The device works with 3000
different phone models and can even defeat password protections.
"Complete extraction of existing, hidden, and deleted phone data,
including call history, text messages, contacts, images, and geotags," a
CelleBrite brochure explains regarding the device's capabilities. "The
Physical Analyzer allows visualization of both existing and deleted
locations on Google Earth. In addition, location information from GPS
devices and image geotags can be mapped on Google Maps."
The ACLU is concerned that these powerful capabilities are being quietly
used to bypass Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches.
"With certain exceptions that do not apply here, a search cannot occur
without a warrant in which a judicial officer determines that there is
probable cause to believe that the search will yield evidence of
criminal activity," Fancher wrote. "A device that allows immediate,
surreptitious intrusion into private data creates enormous risks that
troopers will ignore these requirements to the detriment of the
constitutional rights of persons whose cell phones are searched."
The national ACLU is currently suing the Department of Homeland Security
for its policy of warrantless electronic searches of laptops and cell
phones belonging to people entering the country who are not suspected of
committing any crime.
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/34/3458.asp
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Freedom Is Always Illegal.
Learn How To Protect Your Identity And Prevent Identity Theft
<http://8f7ab0ybg8rx5p6mloffi9yw8t.hop.clickbank.net/>
--
Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups.
For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum
* Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/
* It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls.
* Read the latest breaking news, and more.
