Privacy advocates want Congress to fix gaps in Carpenter ruling

The Supreme Court’s recent ruling that police must get a warrant to access the vast trove of location information wireless carriers collect on their customers marks a breakthrough for privacy rights. But the majority in Carpenter v. United States sidestepped key issues about whether police can still access location data in real time or for short periods without a warrant. These gaps will likely give rise to a flurry of new legal challenges --- and are already sparking calls for Congress to step in to fix potential loopholes. Privacy advocates want lawmakers to regulate companies that sell real-time location data to law enforcement and to require that investigators get a warrant to access location data even for just a few days. “I think Carpenter will be seen as a landmark case for civil liberties protections in the digital age,” said Elizabeth Joh, a criminal law professor at UC Davis School of Law. “But, Carpenter opens up many questions … There is quite likely to be disagreement among judges about how broadly Carpenter’s rationale applies beyond the government’s collection of historical cellphone location data.”