While it may be a bit of a nuisance to enter it as often as you unlock the device, the iPhone passcode might become more than just a guard against the prying eyes of one’s curious-for-gossip friends - lately, there seems to be indication that sooner or later policemen may be able to simply take a look in your smartphones and similar devices if they so deem appropriate. As Ars Technica puts it:
Though the underlying rationale for searches incident to arrest is officer safety, courts have adopted a “bright line” rule permitting an arresting officer to search any object in a suspect’s possession, such as a cigarette pack, even if it unlikely to conceal a miniature Glock. And since the Supreme Court has ruled that police have broad authority to arrest people for even trivial infractions, such as failure to wear a seat belt, the current rule gives law enforcement officers broad discretion to transform a routine traffic stop into a highly intrusive excavation of your digital life.
Of course, this applies to you only if you live in or are traveling to the U.S. Once you are under arrest further searches may be conducted1, however it is unlikely that after a traffic stop arrest such measures will be taken. This is more to keep you ’safe’ from unnecessary police examination rather than provide any kind of cover-up for any possible crimes you may have committed. Some power-smitten officers may be tempted to peek at your photo collection on the spot, even if they let you go.
On the other hand, we need more permanent solutions than this…
- And in certain cases you may be required to surrender passwords or face jail time for refusing to do so [↩]
