Legal & Ethical Surveillance Practices Flashcards

A court order authorizing a pen register allows law enforcement to collect:

Answer: Dialing, routing, addressing, and signaling information only

A pen register captures only metadata such as numbers dialed and call duration, not the actual content of communications.

Which constitutional amendment is MOST directly implicated when government surveillance collects location data from a suspect's vehicle without a warrant?

Answer: Fourth Amendment

The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, and the Supreme Court in Carpenter v. United States extended this to digital location tracking.

In the context of corporate investigations, attorney-client privilege over surveillance findings is MOST likely preserved when:

Answer: The investigation is directed by legal counsel in anticipation of litigation

Attorney-client privilege and work product protection apply when investigations are conducted at an attorney's direction in anticipation of litigation.

Ethical surveillance guidelines generally require that surveillance objectives be:

Answer: Proportionate to the threat or investigative need being addressed

Proportionality is a core ethical principle requiring that the intrusiveness of surveillance be balanced against the legitimate need it serves.

The 'third-party doctrine' as applied to surveillance law means:

Answer: Information voluntarily shared with third parties loses Fourth Amendment protection

Under the third-party doctrine, information shared with banks, phone companies, or other third parties is not protected by the Fourth Amendment because the person assumed the risk of disclosure.

A surveillance professional is ethically obligated to disclose which of the following to a client before beginning an investigation?

Answer: Any conflicts of interest that could affect objectivity or outcomes

Conflicts of interest must be disclosed before engagement to allow the client to make an informed decision about whether to proceed with that investigator.

Under the Stored Communications Act (SCA), a government entity generally needs what to compel disclosure of stored email content older than 180 days from a service provider?

Answer: A search warrant based on probable cause

Following the Sixth Circuit ruling in United States v. Warshak and subsequent DOJ policy, a search warrant is required for stored email content regardless of age.