The Case for Requiring Warrants for ALPR Data Searches

• Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) function as mass surveillance tools, creating searchable records of nearly every driver's movements.
• The EFF argues that law enforcement must be required to obtain a warrant before accessing stored ALPR data to prevent systemic abuse and protect civil rights.

Documented Police Misuse

• Racial and Ethnic Profiling: Over 80 agencies used stereotypical terms to target Romani people without evidence of crime.
• Political Surveillance: Hundreds of searches were conducted to monitor protesters and retaliate against individuals critical of police conduct.
• Stalking and Personal Vendettas: Officers have been exposed for using ALPR data to track ex-partners, romantic interests, and individuals involved in personal domestic disputes.
• Arbitrary Searches: Data shows officers searching networks for nonsensical reasons like "LMAO," "LOL," or "idk," highlighting a lack of oversight.
• Improper Investigations: ALPR networks have been misused to track individuals related to abortion services and to facilitate immigration enforcement in defiance of local policies.

The Function of a Warrant Requirement

• Warrants act as a necessary judicial check, requiring officers to establish probable cause before a neutral judge.
• A specific, documented reason prevents "fishing expeditions" and forces law enforcement to justify the intrusion into sensitive location data.
• Implementing a warrant requirement would move accountability upstream, stopping abuses before the harm is inflicted on the target.

Proposed Policy Changes

• Legislatures and courts must mandate warrants for searching stored ALPR data.
• Real-time tracking mechanisms, such as "hotlists," should also require judicial authorization to prevent officers from using them to stalk individuals.