Technology & Information Policy

Networked devices present new dilemmas to the legal system. The use of these devices can challenge the preconceived notions of what is public and what is private. One might ask, do the same rules for monitoring traffic operations among public and private roads apply to monitoring a telecommunications infrastructure that is made up of public and private networks? Should wiretapping laws written to apply to telephone conversations apply to voice communications over an IP network? Does an individual’s right to privacy end when that person walks out his front door? Does he even have to leave his house, but instead just sign in online? Is surveillance the same thing as search and seizure? The rapid evolution of technical capabilities available in new technology is spurring more questions than answers. When courts are asked these types questions, they routinely have to answer based on law and regulation that was created with old technology in mind. This can and has led to legal challenges regarding the use of these technologies, and can further lead to a public mistrust of these networked devices and systems. This paper looks to explore the relationship between ubiquitous technologies today, the aging policy that is often used to explore and exploit it in the legal arena, and the concept of public trust.