The Volokh Conspiracy – Applying the Fourth Amendment to the Internet: A General Approach

By Kristopher Nelson in the Spring of 2009

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The Volokh Conspiracy – Applying the Fourth Amendment to the Internet: A General Approach:

This article offers a general framework for applying the Fourth Amendment to the Internet. It assumes that courts will seek a technology-neutral translation of Fourth Amendment principles from physical space to cyberspace, and it considers what new distinctions in the online setting can reflect the function of Fourth Amendment protections designed for the physical world. It reaches two major conclusions. First, the traditional physical distinction between inside and outside should be replaced with the online distinction between content and non-content information. Second, courts should require a search warrant that is particularized to individuals rather than Internet accounts to collect the contents of protected Internet communications. These two principles point the way to a technology-neutral translation of the Fourth Amendment from physical space to cyberspace.

This sounds like an extremely interesting piece in an area of law which I find fascinating. I look forward to reading it and thinking about it in more depth.

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About Kristopher Nelson

I'm currently a graduate student of the history of law and technology at the University of California, San Diego. I also provide law and technology consulting services. Additionally, I'm a non-practicing lawyer and former developer/sysadmin at a biotech non-profit. For more about me and my work, see krisnelson.org or my Google Profile.

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Post title: The Volokh Conspiracy – Applying the Fourth Amendment to the Internet: A General Approach

Authored by: Kristopher Nelson

Categorized as: constitution • law • recommendations • search and seizure • technology

Tagged with: Fourth Amendment • Internet • law • technology

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