Justices say Constitution protects people’s location history
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that police must obtain a warrant before accessing a person's location history from companies like Google and Apple. The decision extends Fourth Amendment protections to data that individuals share with third-party technology companies.
Why this matters: For decades, a legal loophole called the third-party doctrine let police pull your private data from any company you shared it with, no warrant needed. Your location history is not a neutral log. It can reveal your doctor, your church, your political activity, who you sleep with, and where you go when you are scared. This ruling says sharing data with a company does not mean you surrendered your constitutional rights. That is a meaningful line, and the court just drew it.
Who should care: General readers · Privacy officers · Policy
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