U.S. Marshals' dirtboxes attempt to extract data from thousands of mobile phones despite of the possibility that it could break the user's privacy.
According to recent news, the country's justice department is making use of a device that allows the government to extract specific data from a person through his mobile phone. A report from The Wall Street Journal claims that the said device known as the dirtboxes from the U.S. Marshals Service Program, which were already deployed to airplanes will aid the authorities, particularly in hunting down a criminal; however, there is also the issue of privacy being jeopardized especially that of the innocent people.
The said program which reportedly started its operation since 2007 is said to involve five Cessna aircrafts from the different airports and that it covers most of the country's population. The device is believed to copy cellular towers, which later on gains confidential information specifically the unique IDs and location data. Although the said kind of program by the justice department seems to appear as something very beneficial in terms of the possibility of manhunt and crime solving operations, it still faces several legal related issues.
While the newest service allegedly operated by the marshals potentially damage one's privacy, the U.S. government justifies that it is least likely invasive. From the same published report, a federal appeals court earlier ruled that collecting and stockpiling of data by investigators is a violation of the constitution. With that, does it mean that the use of dirtboxes is illegal?
While the implementation of the said marshals program still remains debatable, the justice department has reportedly secured a court approval as they insist that they comply with the law. Meanwhile, an official from the U.S. Department of Justice would not confirm or deny the use of the dirtboxes as part of their operations.
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