Montana vote to amend its constitution to protect user data, setting a statewide precedent that will prevent law enforcement from violating user privacy without warrant or consent.
Voters headed to the polls in Montana on Tuesday and voted overwhelmingly for C-48a measure proposed by the state legislature that would add language to the state constitution requiring police to obtain a search warrant before accessing a citizen’s file electronic data or communications.
TECH BRACELET FOR THE RECESSION
While police generally treat a user’s data as private, the amendment would ensure that Montana law enforcement treats it as such. Proponents say the amendment will ensure that law enforcement cannot access a user’s data without going through the proper procedures. Opponents claimed the bill would complicate internet investigations.
“Everything we do is now electronic, including our finances, our medical information and our conversations,” Senator Kenneth Bogner, sponsor of the amendment, told the Washington Examiner. “As we put more and more electronic devices, people will want this data, including the government.”
The amendment “signifies a move away from a reactive approach to securing rights and towards a proactive approach that protects fundamental rights in the context of the 21st century,” said Tanner Avery, director of communications at the Frontier Institute. , based in Montana. Washington Examiner. “Enshrining privacy protections for digital communications in the Montana Constitution will make it clear that regardless of technological changes, the privacy of Montana residents is protected from unwarranted government intrusions.” The institute was one of the main organizations advocating for the amendment.
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The bill received majority support in the Legislature, but was criticized by the Montana Association of Chiefs of Police.
Passage of the amendment makes the state the fourth to include language in its constitution requiring warrants for digital data, after MichiganMissouri and New Hampshire.
