April 20, 2011 /

What Makes The iPhone Location Logging Story So Bad?

Following up on my previous post about iOS 4 powered devices logging your every move, I just noticed this story from Time: The Michigan chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has accused the MSP of using devices to extract information from the cellphones of drivers they’ve pulled over without the owner’s knowledge, thereby violating […]

Following up on my previous post about iOS 4 powered devices logging your every move, I just noticed this story from Time:

The Michigan chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has accused the MSP of using devices to extract information from the cellphones of drivers they’ve pulled over without the owner’s knowledge, thereby violating Fourth Amendment rights. Mark Fancher, an ACLU attorney told reporters that cellphones “can contain information that many people consider to be private, to be beyond the reach of law enforcement and other government actors… There is great potential for abuse here by a police officer or state trooper who may not be monitored or supervised on the street.”

These devices, the Cellbrite UFED, have been in use since before 2008. It doesn’t matter if you password protect your phone or not – it will retrieve the data in about 30 seconds. What 4th amendment?

The police aren’t the only ones you have to worry about either. Curious spouses, private investigators or anyone at all. The data is stored in your phone in very unsecure manner. Got a stalker? Great – just let him grab your phone in a bar. Now he’ll know everywhere you have been and can figure out a pattern.

All we can hopeful now is that some one in Congress will take notice and do the right thing. Steve Jobs needs subpoenaed and forced to answer about this egregious invasion of privacy. If he refuses to answer there, then it’s time for the DOJ to take action. This isn’t an issue of right or left, but rather right or wrong.

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