A former police sergeant was found in contempt of court for failing to unlock the encryption on his computers in a child pornography investigation. Computer privacy advocates argue that the former officer, Francis Rawls, should not be forced to unlock the encrypted hard drives and potentially incriminate himself. Federal prosecutors say the hard drives contain…

Previously, we explained that “Stingrays,” a.k.a. cell site simulators, are powerful law enforcement tools that allow police to track mobile phone users’ location and sometimes intercept their data transmissions. We also noted that in some cases, police have used Stingrays to track suspects without a warrant. Fortunately, judges are beginning to crack down on such…