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Cell Phones, Missing Persons, and Privacy

Posted by kdawson on from the where-you-at dept.

An anonymous reader sends in a Seattle PI story about the use of cell phone records in missing-person cases. Typically, phone companies turn over location information to police without a warrant if one of their customers is reported missing; the police need only to state that the person may be in danger. In any criminal case, a warrant from a judge would be required before the telcos divulged any information. While in some poster-child cases lives have been saved as a result of this practice, it seems like a class-action lawsuit waiting to happen. It is not a crime to go missing.

4 of 295 comments (clear)

  1. It is not a crime to go missing. by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 5, Insightful

    No but it is a crime if someone has taken you against your will. They're not investigating the person missing for criminal activity but because they think that they have been victimized. Privacy is great, perspective is even better.

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    If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
    1. Re:It is not a crime to go missing. by x2A · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If you're really that desperate for privacy, turn your phone off! For anyone not suffering delusions of grandure (yeah so satalites can read your clothes labels from space, but who thinks they're really that interesting?) and realises that we buy phones because most of us are social creatures rather than paranoid conspiracy nuts, and actually like being able to make contact with other human beings.

      "I usually find it best to err on the side of privacy rather than safety"

      Well, I have friends, we share our lives with each other, and would much prefer we look out for each other than live our lives in fear and have to hide from each other. Maybe we're just unique like that.

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      The revolution will not be televised... but it will have a page on Wikipedia
    2. Re:It is not a crime to go missing. by compro01 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Maybe the term is different where you are, but I'm fairly sure that's "implied consent".

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  2. Going Off The Grid 101 by edeloso · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I thought lesson 1 was "Dump the cell phone."