The FBI has reportedly used Google geofencing data to charge at least 45 people with rioting at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. Local and federal law enforcement agencies have already arrested more than 600 people with various crimes in connection with the Capitol invasion. At least 185 people have been charged already, with more charges expected to be filed in the coming weeks and months as the FBI gets its hands on more information critical to its investigation.

US law enforcement agencies have been aggressively pursuing Google geofencing data for their investigations, with geofence warrants to Google increasing exponentially over the past three years. As part of its latest transparency report earlier this year, Google claimed that geofence warrants spiked dramatically from just 941 in 2018 to 11,033 in 2020. It now accounts for more than 25% of all data requests received by the company from law enforcement in the US.

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According to Wired, court documents suggest that one of the two geofence warrants was served on January 6 while the rioters were inside the Capitol building. Many more have reportedly been served since then, allowing the FBI to pinpoint the location of "dozens of suspects." Per the report, the initial warrant only wanted information about the Capitol building and the stairs leading down to the Capitol plaza. By the end of January, the FBI reportedly had access to a ton of data about many of the suspects, including account names, email IDs, and phone numbers.

Concerns Over Potential Misuse Of Geofencing Data

Some legal and tech experts that Wired spoke to expressed support for the FBI's controversial action, while others expressed concerns about the potential misuse of such data. According to Tim O'Brien, an AI policy executive at Microsoft, the unusual nature of the January 6 riots require unusual investigative methods, including the large-scale procurement of geofencing data.

On the other hand, some experts, including an unnamed digital forensics lawyer, said they believed this is a slippery slope. According to them, if this becomes standard procedure, law enforcement agencies may try to use geofencing warrants in traditional criminal cases, which can create a privacy issue for innocent citizens. Another person expressing concern about the technology is Ari Waldman, professor of law and computer science at Northeastern University. Talking to Wired, he said that the January 6 riots are "abhorrent," but that doesn't mean citizens should be stripped of their constitutional right to privacy.

For its part, Google says it played by the book in handling the geofencing warrants, claiming that it ensured the privacy of its users even while complying with the orders. In an official statement, the company said: "We have a rigorous process for geofence warrants that is designed to protect the privacy of our users while supporting the important work of law enforcement". The DoJ did not issue an official comment on the subject.

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Source: Wired