How to Avoid a Cell Phone Drug Bust

If you are purchasing drugs over a cell phone and trying to prevent a mobile phone drug arrest, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. You have to take some basic cellular phone security and safety measures because law enforcement has been known to use all evidence at their disposal, including cell phone data.

It happens frequently– a law enforcement just goes for your phone and begins browsing through your text messages to know who your dealer is. With no consideration for your personal confidentiality, many individuals of the police force will just pick up a telephone call or even send out texts to try and get more offenses and or another drug bust.

Just recently, the Supreme Court has concluded that cell phone data is safeguarded and the cops must have a warrant to search your mobile phone. Anything else remains in direct violation with the united state Constitution’s Fourth Amendment.

“Modern cellphones are not just another technological convenience,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts. “With all they contain and all they may reveal, they hold for many Americans ‘the privacies of life.’ The fact that technology now allows an individual to carry such information in his hand does not make the information any less worthy of the protection for which the Founders fought.” For law enforcements who feel they really need to have access to a suspect’s gadget, Roberts had one simple instruction: “Get a warrant.”

Exceptions are at times made to constitutional protections. This is due to the seriousness of the continuous drug war. Most judges will constantly be on the side of the government. Not all cops go by the rules. Just because the High court said police must now alter the way they do their tasks doesn’t mean they will– or at least not immediately. One must also take into consideration that most snitch deals are never prosecuted and a police officer may look at your mobile device anyway just to see who is in your network of friends and colleagues without meaning to use the evidence against you.

Warning, first a disclaimer: a warrant and a skilled forensic technologist can find practically anything on your IPhone, IOS, Android device; however, with the right settings/apps/common sense you may be able to make it through most scenarios (i.e. traffic stops and common police encounters) without implicating yourself in more difficulty than the initial detention.

So, what is a law-abiding civilian like yourself need to do if a policeman tries to spy on your phone minus a warrant? Here’s what:

Deny Consent

If a law enforcement officer begins to search your mobile phone, calmly and agreeably inform the police officer that his search is in violation of the Constitution under the court’s Riley decision (Riley v. United States is the name of the court case that triggered this new search warrant rule.) Don’t stop there. If captured, you should consistently explain to the arresting officer and any nearby eye witness that you do not consent to this search. This helps make sure that there is no doubt or ambiguity about whether you’ve granted the search. You don’t prefer to stay in a situation where there’s any doubt.

If you’re not under arrest– say, you just got pulled over for a blown tail light– then you have absolutely no liability to sign off on a search of your cell phone, your automobile, or your person.

Don’t get unruly

Do not physically resist a policeman or try to literally stop the search. In this kind of situation, you have no power, and you’re just going to make the situation even worse if you resist or fight. If a policeman considers searching your cell phone even if you did not consent, your best action is to let him or her do this, but keep in mind of who the police officials that are performing the search and then consult with a lawyer. This fight can be dealt with properly in the courtroom.

Have a password

A password will help you keep prying eyes far away from your data. It may be a nuisance to log into your smartphone every time you want to access your device, but if you don’t you want your family, friends, and nosy police snooping, it’s best to make use of a password. As stated above, the police officers have no hesitations about reading your SMS message and setting up your friends in a phony drug bust.

Encrypting your phone

Encryption turns your cell phone data into rubbish, rendering it completely unreadable. When you power on your cell phone, you’ll need to enter the encryption PIN or password, which is the same as your phone’s lock-screen PIN or password. Your phone utilizes your PIN or password to decrypt your data, making things understandable again. If someone doesn’t know the encryption PIN or password, they can’t access your data.

Keep your texts clean

You should be very cautious if you get a random text from someone who you have no idea that talks about drugs. Always believe that the source of a suspicious text is the authorities. If you are not a hundred percent sure who is texting you, do not reply. If you are mostly sure and it’s about something most likely illegal, don’t respond. As explained several times throughout this blog, the authorities can use your friend’s cellular device to bust you– and they will.

Texting apps with privacy features

There are many different apps and programs available that will right away delete texts off of the receiver’s smartphone. Texts are forever, and the statute of limitations for drug cases are usually a few years.

Also, consider a VPN, which will hide your IP address and keep your online activity a secret. Lots of people want to use them for public Wi-Fi safety, and the added bonus is it will make advertiser tracking more difficult.

The Catch

Despite the strong privacy safety and securities established in the court’s Riley decision, cops still can search your mobile phone without a warrant in a couple of scenarios. These are called “exigent circumstances,” and include the abduction of a child, suspecting a person is in imminent harm, or that there is some impending threat of evidence elimination. Fortunately, those kinds of circumstances should be very uncommon.

If your rights have been trampled on and you need help, talk to a qualified Kansas attorney that has secured a strong track record and already has a vast expertise of how to look after your constitutional rights.

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