There is a fascinating story playing out in federal court
here in Denver. The government’s prosecutors are trying to force a criminal
defendant to enter her computer password so investigators can get information off
her computer.
That information would likely be used against her in a
bank-fraud case.
In Wednesday’s The Denver Post, John Ingold wrote:
“Civil-liberties groups nationwide have taken notice,
saying the case tests the strength of rights against self-incrimination in a
digital world. Prosecutors, meanwhile, say that allowing criminal defendants to
beat search warrants simply by encrypting their computers would make it
impossible to obtain evidence in an age when clues are more likely held within
a hard drive than a file cabinet.”
Farther down in the article, Ingold wrote:
“While the key is a physical thing and not protected by
the Fifth Amendment, the Supreme Court has said, a combination — as the
"expression of the contents of an individual's mind" — is.”
So, who is right? Can government investigators force you to enter
your password in a computer just so they can access data and use it
against you?
