Court OKs Seizure of iPhone Metadata to Track Child Porn

GALVESTON, Texas — Federal authorities lawfully seized iPhone metadata to locate a man accused of uploading child pornography, a federal court has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Gregg Costa declined last week to suppress evidence that was taken from an iPhone 4. That evidence included metadata to identify the GPS coordinates where the photo had been taken.

That metadata led FBI agents to the home of defendant Donald Post, who then admitted to taking that photo, as well as others, of a four-year-old girl who had recently stayed at his home.

Post contends that even though he had uploaded the image to a website, he retained a privacy interest in that image’s metadata that law enforcement invaded in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights.

The sexually explicit photo was posted on a website "primarily dedicated to the advertisement and distribution of child pornography and the discussion of matters pertinent to incest and pedophilia."

"Post's attempt to carve out the metadata from his public release of the image finds no support in the text of the Fourth Amendment or the case law applying it," Costa's wrote in his order.

Post "gave up his right to privacy in that image once he uploaded it to the Internet, and that thing he publicly disclosed contained the GPS coordinates that led agents to his home," Costa wrote.

"There is no basis for divvying up the image Post uploaded into portions that are now public and portions in which he retains a privacy interest," Costa wrote.

Tim Henning, ASACP's executive director, told XBIZ that he agreed with the judge's decision in the case.

"Firstly, once an image or video is uploaded to the Internet for public consumption, clearly there is little to no expectation of privacy," he said. "Secondly, not only does the image in this case depict a crime — the creation, transmission and publication of the image are also crimes. There should be no expectation of privacy while committing crimes.

"Thirdly, the technology of GPS tagging of images, also known as geotagging, on smartphones has been in use for years and can be turned off. Further, geotagging information embedded in an image can also be removed. The fact that the individual in question did not realize this is pure ingnorance.

"Thankfully, as in this case, at least some pedophiles are not very bright."

View child porn-metadata ruling

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Braindance Unveils '6DOF' VR Tech

Interactive virtual reality platform Braindance has debuted its new Six Degrees of Freedom (6DOF) VR technology.

Kiiroo, Pineapple Support Launch 'Empower Hour' Series on FeelHubX YouTube Channel

Kiiroo and Pineapple Support have teamed up to launch the “Empower Hour” series on the FeelHubX YouTube channel.

Kansas Law Firm Deploys Religion, Bunk Science While Recruiting Plaintiffs Under AV Law

Kansas-based personal injury law firm Mann Wyatt Tanksley is promoting debunked scientific theories and leveraging religious affiliation against the industry while it seeks potential plaintiffs for lawsuits against adult companies under the state’s age verification law.

UK Tech Secretary Lists Age Verification Among OSA Priorities

Peter Kyle, the U.K.’s Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, on Wednesday made public a draft version of his priorities for implementing the Online Safety Act (OSA), including age verification.

AEBN Publishes Popular Seraches by Country for September, October

AEBN has released its list of popular searches from its straight and gay theaters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Avery Jane Featured on 'Adult Time Podcast'

Avery Jane is the latest guest on the “Adult Time Podcast,” hosted by studio CCO Bree Mills.

FSC: Kansas Law Firm Threatens Adult Site Over Age Verification

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has been notified that Kansas law firm Mann Wyatt Tanksley has sent a letter threatening an adult website with a lawsuit for breaking the state's age verification law.

10th Circuit Rejects Final FSC Appeal in Utah AV Case

The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit on Monday rejected a motion by Free Speech Coalition (FSC) requesting that the full court rehear its appeal in Free Speech Coalition v. Anderson, the industry trade association’s challenge to Utah’s age verification law.

Trump Nominates Project 2025 Contributor, Section 230 Foe to Chair FCC

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated, as his pick to head the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr — an author of Project 2025 who has called for gutting Section 230 protections.

Streamate's Elevate Partners With Miss Mei on Decriminalization Initiative

Streamate’s Elevate initiative is debuting a November collaboration with creator and community advocate Miss Mei that will highlight the modern criminalization of sex work.

Show More