‘Reverse’ searches: The sneaky ways that police tap tech companies for your private data

This report outlines the growing use of “reverse” searches by U.S. law enforcement—such as geofence and keyword warrants—to obtain large datasets from tech companies, highlighting a Kentucky case where prosecutors sought information on all viewers of specific YouTube videos to locate a money laundering suspect. It details civil liberties concerns, conflicting court views on constitutionality, the breadth of companies impacted, and Google’s move to store precise location data on devices (limiting geofence responses) while still potentially providing search and browsing data under court orders.