June has been a great month for GPS location privacy. After years of uncertainty and mixed court rulings regarding warrantless GPS tracking, a bill called The Geolocation and Privacy Surveillance Act (GPS Act) has been drafted. The act is based on current wiretapping laws, lead by democrat Ron Wyden and republican Jason Chaffetz, in a bipartisan effort to define what constitutes legal GPS tracking.
Speaking of the bill, democratic senator Ron Wyden offers his thoughts during a press conference call on June 15, 2011. “This updates an area of the law that has simply not kept up with the times.” He cuts straight to the heart of the matter, saying, “Here’s the bottom line — new tools require new laws.” The law’s failure to address privacy rights to location information has lead to mixed court rulings. Wyden hopes the GPS Act can help resolve the legal uncertainty, explaining, “The law, in effect, is playing catch up with the technological revolution.”
Ed Black, the CEO of the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) released a statement regarding the GPS Act. He echoes Wyden’s sentiments that the bill is overdue. “CCIA supports this long-overdue reform that creates clear rules for a 21st century mobile wireless space marked so far by chaos and misunderstandings.” He goes on to explain, “The bill creates a universal warrant standard for all geolocation information, regardless of how or when it is obtained, sending a clear signal to users that this information is protected.”
There is no doubt that GPS tracking and surveillance can help police gather incriminating evidence, and potentially put dangerous people behind bars. With such powerful technology, however, the privacy of citizens needs to be protected. The law would require probable cause and a warrant to be obtained before using GPS technology to track suspects. Criminal penalties are also included in the law for those who use the technology illegally.
Article Written by Marisa O’Connor
