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posted by chromas on Thursday October 25 2018, @01:06AM   Printer-friendly
from the all-suspects-are-guilty dept.

Feds Order Google To Hand Over A Load Of Innocent Americans' Locations

Here's how it works: cops send Google specific coordinates and timezones within which crimes were committed. Then Google is asked to provide information on all users within those locations at those times, most likely including data on many innocent people. Those users could be Android phone owners, anyone running Google Maps or any individual running Google services on their cell, not just criminal suspects.

[...] "This fishing expedition infringes on the privacy rights of so many possible people who had the misfortune of being in an area where a crime is alleged to be committed," said Jerome Greco, staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society. "We should not allow for such broad access to the data of so many on the mere speculation that a suspect may have used a cellphone near the location of the crime."

[...] Not just Google

Captain John Sherwin of the Rochester Police Department in Minnesota said it wasn't just Google that could furnish cops with a startling mount of detailed location data. Facebook and Snapchat were two others who'd proven useful, he said.

Should we be concerned that government tracks people by their cell phones instead of using mandatory brain implants?


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  • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday October 25 2018, @02:28AM (3 children)

    by The Mighty Buzzard (18) Subscriber Badge <themightybuzzard@proton.me> on Thursday October 25 2018, @02:28AM (#753478) Homepage Journal

    You know that stuff is an "option" that you get charged extra for, yes? It's still technically possible to get a vehicle with a manual transmission, manual windows and seats, no GPS, and a non-computerized radio. Barely but it's possible.

    --
    My rights don't end where your fear begins.
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  • (Score: 2) by Nerdfest on Thursday October 25 2018, @03:05AM (2 children)

    by Nerdfest (80) on Thursday October 25 2018, @03:05AM (#753499)

    Yep, mine has a manual, no GPS, no computer, etc. A surprising number of my friends are the same way. It's not for anti-tracking though, it's just much cheaper and better to drive, as far as I can tell. Most of the cars are four or five years old though. I've heard it's about to start getting harder to get manuals.

    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday October 25 2018, @10:31AM

      by The Mighty Buzzard (18) Subscriber Badge <themightybuzzard@proton.me> on Thursday October 25 2018, @10:31AM (#753587) Homepage Journal

      S'all good. I've spent enough time with tools in my hands (feel free to have a laugh at that, I did) that I can put an aftermarket transmission in and make room for a stick shift if absolutely necessary. Or I can just buy an old vehicle and make it live again. I'm leaning towards the latter if my current Toyota doesn't outlive me because I dig trucks that they don't make anymore. You know, the ones like the 80s and 90s Ranger, S10, Datsun 720, Toyota Hilux... The ones you don't need a stepladder to get up in, can fit a whole sheet of plywood in the bed of, and don't need much in the way of tools to work on.

      --
      My rights don't end where your fear begins.
    • (Score: 2) by legont on Friday October 26 2018, @12:49AM

      by legont (4179) on Friday October 26 2018, @12:49AM (#753944)

      Could you please list cars that as you say don't have computers?

      --
      "Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.