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Warrant required in use of ‘stingrays’ to track cell phones

Saturday, 05 September 2015 3:56 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 05 September 2015 4:02 PM ]

The Justice Department forces feds to obtain warrants to spy on cell phones with stingray devices.

The Justice Department has set new rules for how federal law enforcement can track specific smart phones using electronic devices known as "stingrays."

The new policy now requires feds to obtain a warrant and abide by some boundaries.

The devices basically dupe cell phones by emitting the same kind of radio signal as cellular phone towers to collect information and trick phones into giving up their electronic signature.

Using that data, combined with the strength of the signal, authorities can track the general location of a suspect's cellular device.

The technique has fomented lots of criticism and the Justice Department has issued the new rules to alleviate the concerns.

With the new guidelines, the use of stingray devices will be less abusive and more transparent, officials said.

The newly issued policy will "enhance transparency and accountability, improve training and supervision, establish a higher and more consistent legal standard and increase privacy protections in relation to law enforcement's use of this critical technology," according to a press release from the Justice Department.

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