The Fourth Ammendment

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In Britain, general warrants allowed the Crown’s messengers to search without cause any person suspected of committing an offense; while in the colonies, the Crown used “writs of assistance” as general warrants, but without time restraints.  Both controversies have led to the inclusion of the Fourth Amendment in the Constitution. The Fourth Amendment speaks to the idea that it is illegal for the government or government authority, such as a  Police officer or Military Personnel, to search or claim your person, property, whether that is your house, car, dog or any other sort of property, without a search Warrant.

 

The 21st century and the advent of modern technology has led scholars to debate whether The Fourth Amendment is applicable to the Internet Age where digital information can be readily accessed via the cloud or third parties “tracking” data. According to Orin Kerr a legal scholar, taking online data should be reasonable search and seizure, because if a burglar had just robbed a store and posted a picture of them with the money, it would only make sense for the court to constitutionally “seize” that photo, and use it in the Court of Law. Carpenter vs. United States was a U.S. Supreme Court case that took place in April 2011. Police detained 4 men who had committed armed robbery and the FBI used the cell phone numbers of these 4 men to determine additional charges. This Amendment connects to Thomas Paine’s Common Sense as they both share themes of independence and inalienable rights.

 

I agree with the view saying that certain data sent to a third party/cell companies should remain private. ‘Public’ information should only be information that you choose to publicize, for if you do not know what is public or not, it violates your rights because it is publicizing data without your consent, and the government should not be able to use that information. Public information should only be info you choose to disclose. If for example you choose to have a private account for example, that information (posts, tweets, etc.) should remain as private information. On social media accounts, there should be options to allow the website to disclose your information to the government/make it public. The user should know whether or not information is public. If they say no, the government will not have access to this information.

 

 

 

 

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