Technical Devices And Your Rights

We live in a modern age where our cell phones and computers hold our most intimate pieces of information. From innocent secrets like the Microsoft word journal you keep on your desktop as a folder labeled “for my eyes only”. Or your not so innocent secrets like the pornography that would make a stranger blush. Whatever you do with your phone or laptop is your choice. You have the right to use your devices however you please.

However, there are circumstances where the police or government may want your information. If that is the case then you need to know your rights. Our San Francisco Child Pornography Attorneys at Okabe & Haushalter believe that every person should know their rights in order to be treated fairly. Let us help you understand your situation by starting with your phone and computer rights.

• Consent: when you give the police or government officials consent you are giving them access to everything. It is so important to suppress the urge to say search anything you want to prove your innocence because you never know what they will find. Child pornography has many layers. One of them is the possession of sexual images of a minor. If you are an adult and have old pictures from high school flings they may be used against you. You may have never forgotten about them, but when you give consent you are giving authorities access to everything.
• Anyone you are living with can provide consent for the technical devices. This may not sound fair, but it is true. If you are living with other people make it clear that you do not want them to consent to any searches either. This will protect you and them.
• Your phone is not a fair game if you are arrested. Authorities may not search through your phone even if you are arrested. The authorities may deconstruct the phone to ensure you nothing is hidden in the casing or battery of the phone. However, the authorities must provide a warrant to search through the data and contents of your phone.
• One of the only places authorities can search your phone or computers is at the border. Border patrol agents may search through your data. They can do this even without suspicion. International airports are considered borders too.

In San Francisco, five were arrested including a preacher for distributing and possessing child pornography. They were caught by SFPD internet crimes unit were able to apprehend these individuals because they had specific search warrants to look through their technical devices.

What To Do

If you have been arrested for child pornography then you need a good defense attorney to comb through your charges and make sure that the authorities are playing fair. Our San Francisco Child Pornography Attorneys at Okabe & Haushalter are here to guide you through the process and ensure that you are getting fair treatment. Call 310-543-7708 or click here to speak with our professional staff at Okabe & Haushalter in San Francisco today.