The EFF has announced that both Apple and Dropbox have joined the Digital Due Process (DDP) coalition which is focused on pressing Congress to update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act.
ECPA was passed by Congress in 1986, before the World Wide Web was even invented and when cell phones were still a rarity. Yet to this day, ECPA is the primary law governing how and when law enforcement can access personal information and private communications stored by communications providers like Google, Facebook, your cell phone company or your ISP.
Specifically, the DDP is supporting amendments to ensure the government can't track your cell phone or obtain online content such as emails, photos, documents and backup files without first going to court to get a search warrant.
According to the EFF, the current version of the ECPA is vague on whether these documents and information -- including the tracking of your cell phone -- are presently protected from government intrusion without any form of warrant.
Other coalition members include Amazon, Intel, AT&T, Google and many more.
Seems like governments everywhere are pushing to get power to invade our privacy without obtaining a warrant. Good on Apple and the rest of them for standing up to the government (who no doubt want to exercise these powers "for the public good, trust us, and amen").
Willing to bet that this will somehow be integrated into the Bush Patriot Act or something....since we lost many freedoms when that piece of legislation was passed!
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Now if only we could get cellphone carriers to support a law against cellphone locking and movie labels supporting a repeal of the DMCA. ;)
Willing to bet that this will somehow be integrated into the Bush Patriot Act or something....since we lost many freedoms when that piece of legislation was passed!
The spook agencies do whatever they want. And there is nothing private companies can do about it.
The spook agencies do whatever they want. And there is nothing the government can do about it.
Not only that, but (my) Senator Al “Patriot Act” Franken, who had that gall to blast Apple over a red herring of a privacy issue.