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I wonder how this would fare if the device had been secured with a PIN or some other password. Are we now back around to a situation similar to the warrantless

I wonder how this would fare if the device had been secured with a PIN or some other password. Are we now back around to a situation similar to the warrantless searches US Customs and Border Patrol can do when crossing a border? Edited to add: I just perused the decision linked to in the article[1] and it doesn't appear that the court addressed that issue. The majority's decision does make reference to a "locked footlocker" that was opened without a warrant, and that the US Supreme Court ruled that the search was invalid because it was "distant from the arrest." It doesn't seem to address breaking open the lock. 1 - http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S166600.PDF http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S166600.PDF

tptacek 16y ago
No. If you had read the article carefully, you'd find that the person who had been searched had already been arrested (and with very strong PC). Every ACLU-style "Know Your Rights" video makes this distinction clear: it is not like at the US border, where you can be searched for no reason; there are very specific cases where you can and can't refuse searches. Unlike --- I might add --- large stretches of Europe, where police have far stronger rights to search personal property.
- techsupporter 16y ago
  I understand that the person had been arrested and was in custody. The question I have is whether or not the police could have demanded the password from his phone if one existed, and what consequences would result from his refusal to provide it. The reference to CBP's searches is that there is some question as to whether or not someone must provide the password to a secured device during an otherwise-legal search.
  - gst 16y ago
    I was under the impression that there is no law in the US that requires me to surrender my password. Has there been any court decisions requiring people to surrender passwords?
    - jrockway 16y ago
      No, there haven't been. There is always unencrypted evidence, so nobody really cares.
- CamperBob 16y ago
  Every ACLU-style "Know Your Rights" video makes this distinction clear: it is not like at the US border, where you can be searched for no reason And keep in mind that "at the US border" legally means "within 100 miles of any US border." As of 2006 this covers about 2/3 of the US population.

tptacek 16y ago

No. If you had read the article carefully, you'd find that the person who had been searched had already been arrested (and with very strong PC). Every ACLU-style "Know Your Rights" video makes this distinction clear: it is not like at the US border, where you can be searched for no reason; there are very specific cases where you can and can't refuse searches. Unlike --- I might add --- large stretches of Europe, where police have far stronger rights to search personal property.

techsupporter 16y ago
I understand that the person had been arrested and was in custody. The question I have is whether or not the police could have demanded the password from his phone if one existed, and what consequences would result from his refusal to provide it. The reference to CBP's searches is that there is some question as to whether or not someone must provide the password to a secured device during an otherwise-legal search.
- gst 16y ago
  I was under the impression that there is no law in the US that requires me to surrender my password. Has there been any court decisions requiring people to surrender passwords?
  - jrockway 16y ago
    No, there haven't been. There is always unencrypted evidence, so nobody really cares.
CamperBob 16y ago
Every ACLU-style "Know Your Rights" video makes this distinction clear: it is not like at the US border, where you can be searched for no reason And keep in mind that "at the US border" legally means "within 100 miles of any US border." As of 2006 this covers about 2/3 of the US population.