The Minns government is set to introduce new laws into New South Wales parliament, so that the power NSW police has to require people to provide access to their digital devices, in order to a facilitate scan and download of their content on execution of a warrant and at threat of prison, is available during more routine arrests, roadside stops and other lawful detentions.
The October 2022-enacted digital evidence access order regime provides that police can obtain a DEAO when executing search and crime scene warrants, and if the subject of the order refuses this, then it’s an offence carrying up to 5 years prison time. And as the section containing this criminal offence notes, this measure overrides the common law right against self-incrimination.
However, once NSW police officers have obtained access to a suspect’s phone, they don’t simply scroll through the owner’s latest social media posts, as rather, they employ a device and software developed by Israeli digital forensics company Cellebrite that once connected to a civilian’s phone downloads its entire content, including all deleted messages and images.
The article is deliberately a lot of things imo, none of them good. It’s not written by a lawyer btw, important to note that.
The point about the warrant is the only thing that matters here, and I’d argue it’s meaningless when we are taking about lawful seizure.
A warrant provides you with the legal authority to search for the device, inside a private residence for example. When a cop witnesses a crime and sees that a device is relevant to that crime they can seize it without a warrant. In that case the idea of getting a warrant is superfluous and only a thing because the DEAO law explicitly says so.
They will still need to apply for the DEAO from the same kind of judicial officer that would sign their warrants to get into it.