3 ms·
The NSA secured an order from the FISC directing Verizon to turn over metadata on all calls made within the US, which includes data about the location of their
by Zak 13y ago
The NSA secured an order from the FISC directing Verizon to turn over metadata on all calls made within the US, which includes data about the location of their customers' mobile phones. The Supreme Court has ruled that long-term tracking requires a warrant. The decision was unanimous, but split as to reasoning. The majority held that such tracking without a warrant violates the 4th amendment. It is quite likely that obtaining phone records for the purpose of tracking location has the same legal status.
- Tangaroa 13y agoAh yes, the metadata that is not protected by the 4th Amendment because Verizon's users freely gave it to Verizon and have no expectation of privacy that Verizon would not transmit it further. The relevant case is Smith v. Maryland, which incidentally was decided by a liberal court during a privacy-conscious time after the CIA and FBI scandals came to light in the 1970s. Furthermore, we have learned that the NSA has procedures for accessing the data for the specific purpose of securing public privacy. This is a good example of how one of Glenn Greenwald's stories was flat-out wrong. The Verizon corporation has a good case that their 4th Amendment right to privacy is being violated, but the American people do not in this particular instance. By my understanding, the Supreme Court has not yet ruled against the legality of long-term tracking through information freely given by the tracking subject. You might be thinking of US v. Jones where the police installed a GPS monitor on someone's car.