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Key developments
Supreme Court requires warrants for geofence searches
Bloomberg Law's Christopher Slobogin analyzed a 6-3 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Chatrie v. United States holding that police geofencing is governed by the Fourth Amendment and requires a warrant. The case involved a three-stage Google location-history search used to identify Okello Chatrie in a bank-robbery investigation. The Court remanded the case for the Fourth Circuit to decide whether the warrant met particularity and probable-cause requirements at each step, including the anonymous early stages.
Why it matters
The ruling materially narrows law enforcement access to location-history databases while leaving major implementation questions unresolved.
Sources & driving stories
BLOOMBERG LAW · Christopher Slobogin
Bloomberg Law coveragenoyb urges EU to withdraw U.S. adequacy
Techzine Global's Erik van Klinken reported that noyb sent a letter asking the European Commission to withdraw the U.S. adequacy decision underpinning the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework. noyb argues a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling finding the FTC's independence unconstitutional undermines the framework because the EU relies on the FTC as a U.S. oversight authority. The group says the issue also affects model contracts and corporate transfer policies.
Why it matters
The challenge targets the legal basis for transatlantic personal-data transfers less than three years after the framework took effect.
Sources & driving stories
TECHZINE GLOBAL · Erik van Klinken
Techzine Global coverageT-Mobile seeks Supreme Court review of FCC fines
Communications Daily reported that T-Mobile and Sprint filed a Supreme Court cert petition, docket 25-1422, seeking vacatur and remand of FCC data-breach forfeiture violations. The D.C. Circuit upheld more than $92 million in combined fines in August. The petition argues a recent Supreme Court AT&T decision changed the law on FCC forfeiture power, and also challenges the FCC's treatment of mobile-device location data as customer proprietary network information.
Why it matters
A Supreme Court intervention could constrain FCC privacy and cybersecurity enforcement against telecom carriers.
Sources & driving stories
COMMUNICATIONS DAILY
Communications Daily coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Springfield residents challenge Flock ALPR contract
Dayton Daily News' Jessica Orozco reported that residents urged Springfield commissioners on June 30 to end a Flock camera contract, citing immigration and privacy risks tied to 38 ALPR cameras shared across a network of about 2,500 agencies.
WORTH NOTING
FTC says Amazon will pay $2.25M
BleepingComputer's Sergiu Gatlan reported that the FTC said Amazon will pay a $2.25 million civil penalty over allegations it blocked identity-theft victims and authorized law enforcement from accessing transaction records required under the FCRA.
WORTH NOTING
Texas license-system breach affects millions
Wilson County News reported that Texas Cyber Command confirmed a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department vendor incident may have exposed personal information of more than 3 million hunting and fishing license customers, including Social Security numbers and financial data.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
How narrow must geofence warrants become?
The Supreme Court required warrants but left the Fourth Circuit to decide how particularity and probable cause apply across multi-stage geofence searches.
OPEN QUESTION
Can the EU-U.S. framework survive another challenge?
noyb's FTC-independence argument directly tests whether U.S. oversight still satisfies EU adequacy expectations for cross-border transfers.