Fourth Amendment remote access Rule 41
Advisory Committee Approves Rules to Expand Police Hacking Authority
According to a news report, a committee of the Federal Judicial Conference voted on Monday to approve changes to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Under the revised rule, judges could issue "remote access" warrants authorizing law enforcement to search computers remotely, even when the target is outside the jurisdiction of the court. EPIC criticized the proposal in a statement presented by EPIC Senior Counsel Alan Butler last fall, arguing that the rules would not provide adequate notice as required under the Fourth Amendment. EPIC previously filed an amicus brief on a similar issue, the delivery of warrants via facimile. The decision of the advisory committee is only one of several steps before the change is adopted by the judiciary.