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In addition, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the San

Feb. 3, 2017 by Paul Fletcher

In addition, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department for allowing its Stingray to be used against any suspected federal, state or local government or law enforcement officials, including state legislators, on federal and local occasions.

"San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies have been conducting stingray surveillance in recent years," said Erik Lott, the ACLU's attorney on the case, in a statement to Ars. "They are not required to disclose which stingray technology they use, and they do not collect specific information about a person's location and the location of his or her phones, so the FBI may not be able to see that information. As a result, they have repeatedly refused to produce any kind of records to the FBI. This is outrageous and indefensible. It's an abuse of power, a violation of privacy and a violation of public trust."

The EFF called the Sheriff's Department's tactics "unprecedented and illegal."

"Everywhere in the country the government will conduct surveillance on the public without a warrant, without looking at the actual location of anyone," said ACLU legal director Alan Dershowitz. "Stingrays can make it much easier for law enforcement to track people's movements without ever looking at the actual location of people's phones."

The FBI has said that it is conducting an investigation into the case, with the potential for a third party to help.

"The government must demonstrate that it has probable cause to believe that an individual is under surveillance using a phone-hacking device," said FBI Director James Comey in a statement, which is also reported by the Wall Street Journal.