Bloomberg Law: Google’s Location Data Move Will Reshape Geofence Warrant Use 

Google’s decision cutting off its ability to comply with geofence warrants may not have much practical legal impact on Chatrie’s case and the others pending. And while it closes one avenue for government access to personal data, it’s unknown whether Google will have access to unencrypted location data from its other products, said Sara Geoghegan, counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information Center. 

Google’s terms of service tell users who disable location history tracking the company may still collect location data from searches or other apps. 

“This decision by Google underscores how we need meaningful comprehensive general privacy protections that are much more than pinky promises from tech companies,” Geoghegan said. “This decision shows that Google has too much power here and controls too much information.” 

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