Watching Those Who Watch Us-Does Cellphone-Sweeping ‘StingRay’ Technology Go Too Far?
I can understand the CIA and Pentagon have secrets. I think police hiding their activities that grants them unfettered access to our data and yet allowing them to hide behind FOIA exemptions is a very dangerous idea. One that any despot or tyrant would really appreciate.
In the New York murder case argued by the Legal Aid Society, a judge in Brooklyn last month ruled that the NYPD must have an eavesdropping warrant signed by a judge to use the device, a much higher bar than the “reasonable suspicion” standard that had previously been required.
“By its very nature, then, the use of a cell site simulator intrudes upon an individual’s reasonable expectation of privacy, acting as an instrument of eavesdropping and requires a separate warrant supported by probable cause,” wrote state Supreme Court Judge Martin Murphy.
New York City police officials disagreed with Murphy’s ruling and disputed that a StingRay was even used in the case, even though there had been a court order to do so. Police officials also said they have since started requiring a higher standard of probable cause when applying for the devices.
More: Does cellphone-sweeping ‘StingRay’ technology go too far?