Police rolling out technology which allows them to raid a victim's phone without a warrant

G-MAN2004

G-MAN2004

G-MAN2004

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Police forces across country have been quietly rolling out technology which allows them to download the entire contents of victim's phone without a warrant.

At least 26 forces now use technology which allows them to to extract location data, conversations on encrypted apps, call logs, emails, text messages, photographs, passwords and internet searches among other information.

The searches can be done instantly at a local police station and are used by many forces for low level crime - regardless of whether or not someone is charged - and can be used on victims and witnesses as well as suspects.

The Metropolitan Police, which was the first force to introduce the extraction devices during the London 2012 Olympics, has admitted that when a single photograph is required from a victim's phone every one is downloaded.

The revelations have led to concern that it could prevent victims coming forward, particularly in domestic abuse or rape cases.
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https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/20...echnology-allows-raid-victims-phones-without/

How exactly does this work then? Can you avoid it by ensuring your phone is encrypted? :confused: Either way, it's too far even if it is somewhat expected in the UK of today...
 
Naz Shah MP ""If police want to search someones house then they have to get an arrest warrant." errr.....no.
Clearly doesn't know what he's talking about..LOL
 
G-MAN2004 said:
How exactly does this work then? Can you avoid it by ensuring your phone is encrypted?
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I don't see why not, the US authorities had a complete ball ache trying to get into a terrorist's iPhone not too long ago and Apple's policy was to tell them to do one. AFAIK they finally managed it with the help of an Israeli security firm but likely quite a lot of work... I suspect that the average police officer is not going to be trying anything of the sort and they will likely need your passcode/fingerprint etc.. unless you leave the thing unlocked.
 
VICTIM.
They said victim's phone.
They don't seem to be mentioning anything to do with suspects.

So you report a crime, say you caught the licence plate on your phone, the police want a copy of the picture, they plug in your phone and download the lot.
They have never needed a search warrant to require information given freely by victims.
 
Destination said:
VICTIM.
They said victim's phone.
They don't seem to be mentioning anything to do with suspects.

So you report a crime, say you caught the licence plate on your phone, the police want a copy of the picture, they plug in your phone and download the lot.
They have never needed a search warrant to require information given freely by victims.
Click to expand...

So by going forward to the police with information on your phone they take everything on it to look through.
 
Malevolence said:
Sorry officer, but my phone is encrypted and contains sensitive and confidential data pertaining to my business clients.
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Actually a significant factor here - as by law you will have certain things you have to adhere to when dealing with client data or other business data and the same will apply to the police if they obtain that data.
 
Destination said:
VICTIM.
They said victim's phone.
They don't seem to be mentioning anything to do with suspects.
Click to expand...

:confused:

Unless it has since been edited the OP only makes reference to 'victim' including in the thread title?

Though the technology can be used on both victims and suspects.
 
The initial replies, and indeed the MPs reply seemed to indicate they thought the references were made towards suspects.
Thus why i restated what the article and OP had stated.
 
The police are just using equipment like the MSAB kiosk that can perform a physical and or logical download of a phone (and other digital devices).

Victims/ witnesses have to sign disclaimers outlining the categories of data police are able to extract from their phones.

Police have never, in England and Wales, needed a 'warrant' to inspect any item of property lawfully seized under another provision such as the police and criminal evidence act of 1984 commonly known as 'PACE'.... Most people arrested in the UK are arrested 'not under a warrant' but under PACE (see s. 24 'arrest without a warrant' ) and most property searched for and retained from suspects is also completed using PACE powers (s.1, s. 32, s. 54 etc).

These terminals cannot bypass phone security locks and require any passwords or pin locks etc to be supplied....

Given that 'victims' phones have on few occasions recently been found to contain material heavily undermining the cases then its a bit of Catch 21 for the police now isn't it?
 
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The article in the 3rd paragraph does indeed say it could be used on suspects.

However the technology sounds a bit mehhh.

You clearly have to plug the device in to a computer and then some software decides what it needs to download.
Of course the software is not clever enough to pick out the one relevant photograph so they cheat and download all the photographs.

As long as you are told this is the case is it really that bad ?
 
Domi said:
The article in the 3rd paragraph does indeed say it could be used on suspects.
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A phone is a phone.... Suspects don't generally have 'different' phones to victims /witnesses.

The whole title of the piece makes no sense why would the police need a 'warrant' to inspect a victims phone? Such examinations generally * require consent of the owner!


* an example where this might not be the case could be a missing persons enquiry where police recover the subjects phone and beleive the subject may be at risk and that the phone may contain information to help track them.
 
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Can't see the article but I'm guessing this is different to the device they're using in the US that clones iPhones onto another device to bypass the passcode?
 
It would be fascinating watching someone try to get their head around the content on my phone - not because its encrypted - just the vast amount of data and different types of data spread over a massive range of subjects, etc. a lot of it would likely make little sense without my life experiences as a guide as to how it all goes togther. I don't just have a few contacts, family photos and the odd conversations on there heh.
 
Heck they're funding acid and knife promotion campaigns worth millions:
"Meanwhile, the government has launched a £1.35m series of adverts to run across social media in a bid to deter 10 to 21-year-olds from knife crime."

LOL "deter from knife crime" like its some sort of drug, these people have absolutely no clue as to the causes of knife crime do they. :(



I believe the actual goal here is to increase crime and societal dependency on police, then the citizens will want there to be a police state, then humanity will become fully cooped forever and any and all notions of freedom and liberty will be consigned to history books. Think about it, if a police state was proposed the public would be like "what the ****", but if you shape society into WANTING a police state for basic human needs as feeling safe, then people will walk into it blindly and without question.
 
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