Tester: Flying cell towers violate Constitution

In a Dec. 10 press release, Sen. Jon Tester expressed grave concerns that the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security may be violating the U.S. Constitution by illegally tracking Americans’ cell phones.

Tester said recent reports reveal that several government agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Agency, are using planes equipped with surveillance devices that can collect International Mobile Subscriber Identity data. IMSI is routinely sent to a cell phone network to identify the user.

The airborne surveillance devices, also known as “dirtboxes,” act like cell phone towers by intercepting all nearby phone signals, including those in homes, to collect electronic information that can be used to identify the location and owner of each phone.

In a letter sent to Attorney General Eric Holder and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, Tester made clear that the use of dirtboxes could be a violation of Americans’ Constitutional rights.

“These devices potentially violate the Fourth Amendment and represent a significant intrusion into the private lives of thousands of Americans,” the letter said. “While we all want law enforcement agencies to use cutting-edge tools to catch criminals and protect our borders, Americans should not have to sacrifice their privacy rights in the process.”

The letter was co-signed by Sens. John Walsh, D-Montana, Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, Tom Udall, D-New Mexiso, Chris Coons, D-Delaware, Mark Begich, D-Alaska, Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, Al Franken, D-Minnesota, Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, and Martin Heinrich, D-New Mexico. The senators asked Holder and Johnson to provide answers about the depth and breadth of dirtbox usage.

Tester, a strong supporter of Americans’ civil liberties, said he intends to make Holder’s and Johnson’s answers public. He told the officials that given the “extreme lengths” to which federal agencies have gone to keep similar surveillance technologies secret, strict oversight is necessary.