Prosecutors Demand Laptop Password in Violation of Fifth Amendment
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San Francisco - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) urged a federal court in Colorado today to block the government's attempt to force a woman to enter a password into an encrypted laptop, arguing in an amicus brief that it would violate her Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
A defendant in this case, Ramona Fricosu, is accused of fraudulent real estate transactions. During the investigation, the government seized an encrypted laptop from the home she shares with her family, and then asked the court to compel Fricosu to type the password into the computer or turn over a decrypted version of her data. But EFF told the court today that the demand is contrary to the Constitution, forcing Fricosu to become a witness against herself.
"Decrypting the data on the laptop can be, in and of itself, a testimonial act -- revealing control over a computer and the files on it," said EFF Senior Staff Attorney Marcia Hofmann. "Ordering the defendant to enter an encryption password puts her in the situation the Fifth Amendment was designed to prevent: having to choose between incriminating herself, lying under oath, or risking contempt of court."
The government has offered Fricosu some limited immunity in this case, but has not given adequate guarantees that it won't use the information on the computer against her.
"Our computers now hold years of email with family and friends, Internet browsing histories, financial and medical information, and the ability to access our online services like Facebook. People are right to use passwords and encryption to safeguard this data, and they deserve the law's full protection against the use of it against them'" said EFF Staff Attorney Hanni Fakhoury. "This could be a very important case in applying Americans' Fifth Amendment rights in the digital age."
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This is actually good news for anyone using encryptions software's but this doesn't mean you will get lucky. You will get limited immunity but in the end they will get you.
But still there is hope for everyone.
Comments
I don't know why people give up their passwords. They'll end up doing even MORE time after they get into their files. Imagine if the feds force encryption "providers" to add a gov't backdoor. How long before that key leaks?
Lots of "cyber fun" coming our way...
If they understood that, we wouldn't have a problem. Unfortunately, the constitution is just for show in the U.S.
The government respects it sometimes to keep up appearances, but they blatantly break it's rules and disregard it other times. If they can pick and choose which rights to respect and which rules to follow and when, then we don't really have any.