Washington, DC — On Wednesday, 404 Media, NOTUS and other outlets exposed a tool used by both law enforcement and non-law enforcement entities to track anywhere a smartphone goes. Warrantless government surveillance like this is made possible by the “data broker loophole,” which allows the government to bypass constitutional warrant requirements and simply buy intimate details about all our lives collected by our phones and computers. The Fourth Amendment is Not for Sale Act, a bill passed by the House and currently in consideration by the Senate, would close the loophole and ensure that our private location data is not sold to the federal government without a warrant. Polling released by Demand Progress Education Fund and FreedomWorks found that 80 percent of Americans support such a law.
The following is a statement from Demand Progress Policy Director Sean Vitka:
“While some government agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission are protecting consumers’ rights, others are unconstitutionally tracking our every move. Using tools like Locate X, the government can warrantlessly track us wherever we go, even across state lines to an abortion clinic. This is why the Senate, and Majority Leader Schumer, must prioritize passing the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act, which passed the House in April.
The vast majority of Americans, 80 percent, think law enforcement should have to obtain a warrant before accessing our sensitive data. Despite this, the National Security Council and others oppose legislation to create a warrant requirement. This reporting on Locate X shows the extreme dangers of the data broker loophole and why we must pursue every opportunity to challenge out-of-control surveillance capitalism.”