NEWS
Google Killing Geofence Data
On December 14, 2023, Google announced that it will be changing how it stores and utilizes users’ “Location History” in Google Maps. This history is currently made available by "opting in" and Google has in the past been able to access it and provide it to Law Enforcement as production for search warrants. Google is now planning to make the data retention period shorter, and also encrypting the data making it impossible for Google itself to access it. Because of this, they would no longer be able to produce this data as part of legal production.
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Legal advocates against geo-fence warrants argue that this location data implicates innocent people in crimes as they identify anyone who could have been in the vicinity during the commission of a crime.
Jennifer Lynch, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, commented on geo-fence warrants stating “They threaten privacy and liberty because they not only provide police with sensitive data on individuals, they could turn innocent people into suspects.”
There is currently a case working its way through the appellete courts United States v. Chatrie, which is challenging the legality and broadness of geo-fence warrants. A ruling on this case is not expected until sometime next year.
While complete encryption seems to be the direction that Google is taking, it should be noted that this has not fully taken effect yet and existing geo-fence warrants should still be productive. Google also heavily relies on the location data for advertisement and additional revenue, so it would be interesting for the company to give up this revenue generating tool in its entirety. It will be interesting to see how this plays out and when new information becomes available we will do our best to update you!
Jennifer Lynch, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, commented on geo-fence warrants stating “They threaten privacy and liberty because they not only provide police with sensitive data on individuals, they could turn innocent people into suspects.”
There is currently a case working its way through the appellete courts United States v. Chatrie, which is challenging the legality and broadness of geo-fence warrants. A ruling on this case is not expected until sometime next year.
While complete encryption seems to be the direction that Google is taking, it should be noted that this has not fully taken effect yet and existing geo-fence warrants should still be productive. Google also heavily relies on the location data for advertisement and additional revenue, so it would be interesting for the company to give up this revenue generating tool in its entirety. It will be interesting to see how this plays out and when new information becomes available we will do our best to update you!