Privacy & Tech
Your rights over your phone, devices, data, and digital privacy.
Your phone is the most revealing thing you own, and the Supreme Court has treated it that way. In Riley v. California (2014), the Court held that police generally need a warrant to search the contents of your phone, even after an arrest. In Carpenter v. United States (2018), it ruled that the government generally needs a warrant to get your historical cell-site location records.
A few practical lines matter. Police usually cannot force you to reveal a passcode you keep in your head, but courts are split on whether they can make you unlock with your face or fingerprint — so a passcode is the safer lock. Protection is weakest at the border, where agents may inspect devices without a warrant. The articles below cover phone searches, location tracking, doorbell and license-plate cameras, and how to keep your data yours.
Your Questions, Answered
- Can Police Get My Ring or Doorbell Camera Footage? Usually they need a warrant or your consent to get footage from your camera account — but there are real exceptions: the company can hand over footage in a genuine emergency, and you can always choose to share it. This area is actively changing.
- Can Police Make Me Unlock My Phone? They generally cannot force you to reveal your passcode — courts treat that as protected testimony under the Fifth Amendment. Face ID and fingerprint are murkier: courts are split, and some allow police to compel them. A passcode gives you the strongest protection.
- Can Police Search My Phone Without a Warrant? Generally, NO. The Supreme Court ruled in Riley v. California that police need a warrant to search the contents of your cell phone — even after an arrest.
- Can Police Track My Car With License Plate Readers? A single plate scan in public generally is not a 'search' — but using automated license plate readers to track your movements over time may require a warrant, and courts are actively split on where that line falls.
- Can Police Track My Phone's Location? Generally, NO — not without a warrant. In Carpenter v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled police need a warrant to get the location history your phone leaves with your cell carrier. Narrow emergency exceptions exist.
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