Keyword Search Warrants Are As Kafkaesque As They Sound

Children learn early that they should not accept candy from strangers, but it takes people longer to learn not to accept cookies on websites they visit.  More recently, Internet users have become more cautious about privacy, and with good reason.  Even with privacy settings, web browsers still store more data than consumers are comfortable with.  Most of the time, the worst consequence is that you are embarrassed at someone finding out about the symptoms and unlikely scenarios that you were worrying about late one night.  Of course, much worse things can happen than a website moderator giggling about your angst over your nose hairs.  There is identity theft, but if that happens, then at least the law will try to help you instead of trying to punish you.  The worst is when the Internet uses your search terms against you without your knowledge, and then the state uses them as probable cause to charge you with a crime.  If you are facing legal trouble because of Internet search queries, contact a Pittsburgh criminal defense lawyer.

Google Is the World’s Biggest Snitch

It is bad enough that Google knows all your secrets, but it is even worse that, if left to its own devices, Google can make you look even guiltier than you are.  Sure, one might have a variety of motivations for Googling “how does arsenic poisoning work,” but it is hard to imagine an innocent search for “crystal meth near me.”  The Supreme Court has ruled that the government does not have the right to tell people what books they can read in the privacy of their homes; it follows that search terms are protected speech.  Google searches about crimes, weapons, illegal drugs, violence, and hate speech are not, by themselves, evidence of crimes.

Content moderators report content that appears to contain evidence of crimes to law enforcement, such as when users upload images of child sexual abuse to websites or when they offer to sell illegal drugs.  The court can also subpoena online messages if it needs them for a pending criminal investigation.

In the News

Pursuant to the Fourth Amendment, police must obtain a warrant before they can search your property, or else they must prove in court that they had probable cause to search you after apparently catching you in the act.  Therefore, it makes sense to search the cell phone of someone accused of soliciting a minor when the minor’s parents have complained to police about the matter.  Dragnet searches of search engine queries are another matter entirely, and the plaintiffs in a case currently pending before the Pennsylvania courts argue that these searches violate the First Amendment as well as the Fourth.  In a dragnet search, police request data from Google about everyone who has entered a particular search term.  Therefore, simply by Googling “where to buy fentanyl Pittsburgh,” you could be accused of a crime, even if you only entered the search term so you could find out which places in town to avoid.

Contact Gary E. Gerson About Criminal Defense Cases

A criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are under investigation because curiosity led you to enter a suspicious looking search term.  Contact the law offices of Gary E. Gerson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania about your case.

Sources:

pennlive.com/news/2024/01/constitutionality-of-police-using-keyword-warrants-challenged-in-pa-case.html

eff.org/press/releases/eff-urges-pennsylvania-supreme-court-find-keyword-search-warrant-unconstitutional