Helping Law Enforcement Use Data from Mobile Applications

Consumer devices that automatically and unobtrusively collect data about their users, including cell phones and other mobile devices, are spreading. While these devices gather much data that is potentially helpful to law enforcement, they also complicate the interpretation of surveillance law and raise questions about privacy. Moreover, facilitating law enforcement understanding of and access to metadata may help law enforcement adjust practices as increased use of encryption decreases the availability of content information, even with appropriate legal permission. This report documents a prototype tool called MIKE (the Mobile Information and Knowledge Ecosystem) created to help interested stakeholders — law enforcement, commercial enterprises, regulators, legislators, and the public (including advocacy groups) — better understand the mobile app ecosystem and the relationships among the data, its sources, and applicable legal constraints. This volume describes the prototype, explains how it was developed, provides a manual for those who are interested in using it, and discusses how the prototype might be updated and extended.