Warrantless Governmental Surveillance Through the Use of Emerging Technology Has Become a Mainstay of Governmental Investigation

Abstract

The United States government enjoys awesome technological capabilities. It can facilely monitor electronic communications and surreptitiously retrieve stored information on private computer systems. Technology that was once the stuff of science fiction is now routinely used in real life to monitor the activities of citizens, corporations, even foreign nationals in foreign nations.

Unfortunately, such powerful governmental capabilities have not been tempered by the countervailing protective judicial or legislative safeguards necessary to offset the greatly increased potential for improper government intrusiveness.

Keywords: Privacy, Constitutional Law, Emerging Technology, Fourth Amendment, Cybersecurity

JEL Classification: K00, K4, K40, K41, K42, K2, K20