Google fights US ‘remote access’ proposal

An advisory committee plans to change the way search warrants are issued by federal and state judges.The amendment would let the US government obtain a warrant to conduct ‘remote access’ searches of electronic storage media if its location is ‘concealed by technological means.’But in a blog post strongly opposing these plans, Google has warned this […]

An advisory committee plans to change the way search warrants are issued by federal and state judges.
The amendment would let the US government obtain a warrant to conduct ‘remote access’ searches of electronic storage media if its location is ‘concealed by technological means.’
But in a blog post strongly opposing these plans, Google has warned this amendment could lead to devices being tracked globally and is calling on the debate to be taken to Congress.
The amendment was proposed last year by the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure, at the request of the Department of Justice.
It specifically relates to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41 that governs the issue of search warrants.
As it stands, Rule 41 largely prohibits a federal judge from issuing a search warrant outside of the judge’s district.
Under the proposals, exceptions to this rule would be added to include computers and networks.
In particular, the change would let authorities apply for a warrant and remotely search storage if the media has been hidden.
The location of such media can be concealed using private networks, for example, or by rerouting traffic across multiple servers.
The committee explained the searches would be useful when investigating botnets, for example, but Google is concerned.
Botnets are network of computers that are controlled by hackers to send spam or spread malware.
Criminals use malicious software to turn a victim’s computer into a bot, also known as a zombie. The computer can then be used to spread files without the owner’s knowledge.