[ExI] Location Tracking Risks

[spike at rainier66.com]

-----Original Message-----
From: extropy-chat <extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org> On Behalf Of
BillK via extropy-chat
Subject: [ExI] Location Tracking Risks

>...There is a huge industry involved in mobile phone location tracking.
...

>...It is an interesting question whether government use of location
tracking is forbidden by the Fourth Amendment, which is intended to protect
citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.  BillK
_______________________________________________



Hi BillK, thanks for that.  Cell phones have been in the constitutional gray
area ever since they came about.  Strict constitutionalists have split both
ways on it, and I myself have gone 360 at least 4 times over the past two
decades.

When one is a strict constitutionalist, as I am, that means strict.  Since
the constitution predated cell phones (and abortion) it doesn't specifically
give the federal government the authority to rule on those areas (by my
reasoning.)  A strict constitutionalist would argue that this would be a
state government call, if that state writes into its constitution the right
to look at cell phone data.

The way I would go is to consider cell phone tracking as metadata, which is
analogous to the address on an envelope you drop off at the post office.
Secure in houses and letters means the federal government is allowed to note
if you are writing letters to commies for instance, but may not legally open
and read the letters.  This is how I interpret that "secure in houses and
letter" clause.  Your cell phone location is metadata, so I would say from a
strict constitutionalist POV, the fed is allowed to collect it or buy it,
but not to listen to the conversations.  

I am open to suggestion and counter-argument on that point.  Naturally yanks
have grown quite distrustful of our FBI considering recent events, and I
don't like their collecting location info, but as far as I can tell, it is
constitutionally legal.

spike