Boston College Law Review Volume 57 | Issue 2 Article 8 3-31-2016 Unpacking the Dirtbox: Confronting Cell Phone Location Tracking with the Fourth Amendment Jonathan Bard Boston College Law School,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/bclr Part of the Communications Law Commons, Criminal Law Commons, Criminal Procedure Commons, Fourth Amendment Commons, and the Law Enforcement and Corrections Commons Recommended Citation Jonathan Bard, Unpacking the Dirtbox: Confronting Cell Phone Location Tracking with the Fourth Amendment, 57 B.C.L. Rev. 731 (2016), http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/bclr/vol57/iss2/8 This Notes is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in Boston College Law Review by an authorized editor of Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. UNPACKING THE DIRTBOX: CONFRONTING CELL PHONE LOCATION TRACKING WITH THE FOURTH AMENDMENT Abstract: Surveillance technology has raced ahead of the Fourth Amendment, forcing courts to confront high-tech intrusions with rusty jurisprudence. The Dirtbox, an airborne cell-site simulator, allows the government to sweep entire cities and intercept individuals’ cell phone location information without rely- ing on cooperative intermediaries. This Note argues that the government’s use of the Dirtbox and other cell-site simulators amounts to a Fourth Amendment search because it may pinpoint individuals within a constitutionally protected space. Although the Department of Justice issued policy guidelines requiring its agents to obtain a search warrant before using this device, this narrow and unenforceable protocol fails to adequately regulate the rising use of cell phone tracking devices.