The Fourth Amendment and Cell Phone Location Tracking: Where Are We

Authors

Kevin McLaughlin

Abstract

Cell phones are a way of life in our society. While most people readily use their cell phones, they don't realize that cell phones also provide signals to track their location. This manner of cell phone tracking may be a violation of the Fourth Amendment right to be free of unreasonable searches and seizures. Under the test developed in Katz and its progeny, depending on a number of factors, cell phone tracking may qualify as a reasonable search. However, because cell phone tracking appears to implicate a number of core Fourth Amendment doctrines, it appears to constitute an unreasonable search.

Recommended Citation

Kevin McLaughlin, The Fourth Amendment and Cell Phone Location Tracking: Where Are We, 29 UC Law SF Comm. & Ent. L.J. 421 (2007).
Available at: https://repository.uclawsf.edu/hastings_comm_ent_law_journal/vol29/iss3/4