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Fnord666 writes:

Amazon is balking at a search warrant seeking cloud-stored data from its Alexa Voice Service. Arkansas authorities want to examine the recorded voice and transcription data as part of a murder investigation. Among other things, the Seattle company claims that the recorded data from an Amazon Echo near a murder scene is protected by the First Amendment, as are the responses from the voice assistant itself.

Amazon said that the Bentonville Police Department is essentially going on a fishing expedition with a warrant that could chill speech and even the market for Echo devices and competing products. In a motion to quash the subpoena, the company said that because of the constitutional concerns at issue, the authorities need to demonstrate a "compelling need" for the information and must exhaust other avenues to acquire that data.

[...] According to the warrant, Bentonville authorities are seeking "audio recordings, transcribed records, or other text records related to communications and transactions" between the Echo device and Amazon's servers during the 48-hour period covering November 21-22, 2015. Amazon said the authorities should, at a minimum, establish "a heightened showing of relevance and need for any recordings" before a judge allows the search.

[...] The warrant at issue concerns the 2015 death of former Georgia police officer Victor Collins. He was found dead in a hot tub at the Bentonville home of Bates, who claimed the death was an accidental drowning. Arkansas police believe Bates died after a struggle. They suspect that the Amazon Echo they found streaming music near the hot tub may help solve the case.

Source: ArsTechnica. Also at BBC and TechCrunch.

Previously: Police Seek Amazon Echo Data in Murder Case

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