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DoJ: Law Enforcement Can Impersonate People On Facebook
An anonymous reader sends news that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency impersonated a young woman on Facebook to communicate with suspected criminals, and the Department of Justice argued that they had the right to do so. The woman was charged with being part of a drug ring and sentenced to probation, after which a DEA agent set up a Facebook page in her name, uploaded images to it (including pictures of her son and niece), and used it without her consent. She recently sued the agent in federal district court, and the government argued that she "implicitly consented by granting access to the information stored in her cell phone and by consenting to the use of that information to aid in an ongoing criminal investigations [sic]." Facebook has now removed the account, and the DoJ is "reviewing" the case.
I thought that law enforcement had always been allowed to do this in sting operations and the like. The police are under no obligation to tell the truth when confronting a potential suspect. Yes, their wording to her may have been deceptive, but, frankly, I don't have much faith in someone saying, "Yes I gave them consent to use my photos, but not like this!" It sounds a good deal like buyer's remorse.
If the officer in question were reasonable, he would have used images that are in public record of her, so I can see the outrage to that portion as reasonable, but, frankly, I don't see how this is terribly surprising and front page news.
PS...since when is BuzzFeed considered to be even remotely a reputable news source?
"Don't meddle in the affairs of a patent dragon, for thou art tasty and good with ketchup." ~ohcrapitssteve
Louisiana: http://www.criminaldefenselawy... Unfortunately in New York http://www.criminaldefenselawy... the intent must be criminal.
You fucking dumbass.
The only difference between Obama and Bush is that the former is a better public speaker.
To the dismay of comedians everywhere.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
You think a fake Facebook account is bad, how about having a cop take over your ID and use it to become a stripper! In 2003, Ohio law enforcement agents "appropriated" a woman's drivers license and SSN, and assigned them to an undercover officer who went to work as a stripper for 3 months as part of a sting operation on strip clubs. And the victim in that case hadn't been arrested for (nor consented to) a damn thing.
Pointing to a 2002 change in Ohio's law aimed at fighting identity theft, [the prosecutor] said police are allowed to assume anyone's identity as long as it's part of an investigation.
Fucking outrageous. Law enforcement in the US is out of control and has been so for quite some time.
Thanks to the War on Drugs, it's easier to buy meth than it is to buy cold medicine!
Yes, the guy who had about the most liberal voting record in the Senate is a Republican...
I see you fail to understand the origins of your own party, or where it existed until the last decade.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --