If you are the subject of a criminal investigation, the sooner you learn about your rights, the better. Police officers know that many people do not fully understand how the law works or how seemingly simple actions could jeopardize their prospects of a successful outcome.
One area the police may want to investigate is your phone activity. Because most people do so many things on their phones, there is often a wealth of information that officers can use to build a case against a person. This could include messages and images you sent or received, websites and forums you visited, proofs of purchase or your location on a particular date and time.
There are three main ways the police can get to this information:
1. With your permission
In many cases, a police officer will just ask for permission to look at someone’s phone and ask them to unlock it. Those who don’t realize they have the right to say no often hand over the phone, making the officer’s job much easier. You are perfectly within your rights to say no.
2. Via a search warrant
If you say no, the officers can request a search warrant from a court, but they’ll have to show the court they have a valid reason to request one. If they don’t have a good reason, then the court should refuse.
3. Via a subpoena of a service provider
The police know that people often wipe things from their phones if they think the police may search them. So they often go directly to the company that stored that information- be that Meta, Google, Verizon or whoever and subpoena a copy of the information. They will likely still have copies of whatever you deleted.
If you think you might be under investigation, or know you are, remember that early legal guidance can serve you