Surveillance requests to cellphone carriers surge - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

Surveillance requests to cellphone carriers surge

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WASHINGTON -

A new report finds that law enforcement agencies in the U.S. made more than 1.3 million requests for customers' cellphone records last year.

It's an alarming surge over previous years, reflecting the increasingly gray area between privacy and technology.

A print says it received about 500,000 subpoenas in 2011. Requests are increasing annually at Verizon and T-Mobile. And AT&T has a dedicated team of more than 100 workers whose job it is to handle police requests.

Cellphone carriers say they usually require warrants to hand over information, but not in emergencies, such as when there's an immediate threat to someone's life.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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