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Here's a few options:iPad Apps:Zite, Pulse: Both have options that allow for you to customize news from your industry (Recommended categories: Technology, Startups, UX/UI, Design, Business, Investing)Traditional RSSVC and Research Firm NewslettersSorry I can't find the sign-up links, but a number of research firms and VCs have weekly newsletters that summarize all the happenings in the industry. A good one I recommend is ThinkEquity: Internet NewsletterHere's an excerpt of their most recent email to give you a sense:ThinkEquity LLCInternet NewsletterVolume 5, Issue 7 – Week of March 26, 2012Recent NewsSocialYahoo sued Facebook over 10 patents that include methods and systems for advertising on the Web, opening the first major legal battle among big technology companies in social media. The lawsuit, filed in a San Jose, California federal court, marks a major escalation of patent litigation that has already swept up the smartphone and tablet sectors and high-tech stalwarts such as Apple, Microsoft and Motorola Mobility Holdings. (Link). Facebook acquired 750 patents from IBM, adding IP that may help it counter allegations of patent infringement. (Link)Twitter celebrated its sixth birthday last week. The Company has posted a number of stats about its growth in usage. Twitter now has 140 million active users is seeing 340 million Tweets a day (more than double what it was last March). A year ago, Twitter was seeing 140 million Tweets per day. (Link)Pinterest introduced brand-new profile pages, its first major design change since its major rise in popularity in the last six months. Pinterest launched in 2010, but recently it has seen astronomical growth and counts as one of the top 10 social networks on the web. According to recent comScore data, Pinterest users spend an average of 89 minutes per month on the site, which easily bests Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+. Only Facebook users spend more time than Pinterest users, with an average of 405 minutes spend there per month. (Link)Socialbakers shared some interesting data that gives insight into which brands are successfully engaging users on Facebook, and which are finding more luck on Twitter. Over all, it’s not surprising to find that Facebook is a far more suitable tool to use when trying to engage fans. Facebook engages people in a conversation and a dialogue providing its fans with a feeling of exclusivity. Twitter on the other hand is limited by 140 characters but at the same time its content reaches more people. (Link)Brands are wasting no time switching over to Facebook’s new Timeline Page design. Just one week after the social network rolled out the radical facelift, more than 8 million Pages made the transition. Facebook rolled out its new take on the personal profile to all users in December. More than one million Facebook Pages are making the switch to the new Timeline design each day, a Facebook spokesperson told VentureBeat. (Link)E-CommercecomScore released its monthly analysis of U.S. web activity at the top online properties for February 2012 based on data from the comScore Media Metrix service. Valentine’s Day had Americans searching the web for flowers, jewelry and just the right e-card for their loved ones. The highly anticipated Super Bowl XLVI drove traffic to a few key advertisers’ websites, with especially strong growth seen on Auto Manufacturer sites. (Link)Online ticketing platform Eventbrite is making a big push towards reaching $1 billion in gross ticket sales in 2012; after doubling both the number of events on platform in 2011 (458,207 events in 2011) and tickets sold last year (20,798,509 tickets sold in 2011). In 2011, the Company sold $400 million worth of tickets, which is double the $207 million it did in 2010. The Company just announced a complimentary credit card reader to allow event organizers to collect ticket payments on the go. (Link)Fandango announced a partnership with Yahoo that will see it becoming the online and mobile movie ticketer for Yahoo! Movies, a service with over 30 million U.S. users according tocomScore. The new collaboration offers Yahoo users access to Fandango’s 20,000 screens across the U.S. and will support purchases online, on mobile and on tablets. (Link)There’s been lots of debate about whether mobile apps or the web have the upper hand when it comes to making content for smartphones, and when it comes to using it. Some interesting insights from Nielsen on how in the case of mobile shopping, for now the main audience in the U.S. seems to be much more interested in using the mobile web over store-specific apps. (Link)eBay launched a new feature of its iPad app called Watch With eBay, which allowed users to shop a selection of items on the marketplace related to what they are currently watching on TV. eBay is now separating out the feature into a standalone, free iPad app. The Watch With eBay app surfaces merchandise related to what consumers are watching on television, from the latest fashion trends at red carpet awards shows to sports memorabilia, to DVDs, signed autographs and other items related to favorite shows and actors. (Link)GamingJust days after the launch of Angry Birds Space, Rovio announced via Twitter that the application has already seen 10 million downloads. The game is topping Apple's paid and top-grossing charts for the App Store in countries around the world. (Link)Tablet games are expected to grow to $3.1 billion worldwide, according to a new report from analyst firm Juniper Research. The spending on tablet games is expected to account for a third of all mobile game revenues by 2016, when total mobile game revenues are expected to top $18.3 billion. (Link)Casual and mobile games company Miniclip has teamed up with app monetization platform and ad server MoPub, releasing a joint study on the behavior of mobile gamers, breaking the group down by age, gender, and content preference. The biggest surprise from the study came in this little nugget of user behavior wisdom: Despite its name and connotation, 44 percent of gamers play “mobile games” on the couch versus playing in any out-of-living room location, “including time spent traveling or waiting,” the study says. (Link)Gree has become a billion-dollar company in Japan with its mobile social games network. The Company launched Zombie Jombie, the first title made by Gree’s U.S. developers for an American audience. The title is an important one for Gree, which is competing with a larger rival Japanese firm DeNA, which has launched its worldwide mobile social network Mobage in an attempt to expand far beyond its audience of 35 million Japanese users. (Link). A week later, Gree launched its second U.S. game, Alien Family. (Link)MobileTaking just the use of paid content on tablets in Q4 2011, Nielsen found that in the U.S., a majority of tablet owners have already paid for downloaded music, books and movies, with 62 percent, 58 percent and 51 percent respectively saying they have already made such purchases. The one area that really fell down in the U.S. was news, where only 19 percent said they had ever paid to read news on their tablets. (Link)Amazon announced its mobile app marketplace, the Amazon Appstore for Android, is celebrating its first birthday with a week-long sale on some of its most popular apps. The Company also took the time to share some figures about the Appstore’s growth over the past year, including the size of its selection, which grew from 4,000 apps at launch to 31,000+ apps. (Link)The makers of seven iOS-only, for-charge applications, including the sophisticated photo capture and edit application Camera+, have sold more than 10 million applications by way of the App Store. Tap Tap Tap, a hobby-project turned accidental big-business, crossed the 10 million paid application sales milestone for all of its apps. (Link)With a metric that’s bound to make mobile app developers jealous, Apple has confirmed that its newly launched iOS-compatible version of iPhoto hit the 1 million user mark, only 10 days after its release. That’s not app downloads, mind you, but unique users. Given the app’s universal nature, it’s likely that many are installing it at least twice – once on the iPhone, or possibly the iPod Touch, and then again on the iPad. But Apple is counting such an installation only once in this metric. The number of actual downloads may be much higher. (Link)IDC is upping its forecasts for how many “media” tablets will be shipped this year. The analysts predict that the number will top 106.1 million units, up from their previous forecast of 87.7 million units, due in part to strong demand for that new iPad, but also a number of other devices at a range of price points. Indeed, while Apple will continue to be the single biggest tablet maker on the market, Android, collectively, will continue to hold its own against it, with some notable devices like the Amazon Kindle Fire doing particularly well. (Link)In Appcelerator and IDC's quarterly report on the trends of the mobile industry, 39% of developers answered that Google's total assets were more important to them than Facebook's social graph. Considering the huge lead that Facebook has in the social space, this is a bit of a coup for Google. What else are developers interested in at the start of 2012? HTML5 is on the rise, cloud services are hot and developer interest in Android is dwindling. (Link)Digg founder Kevin Rose has been hired by Google, according to sources close to the situation. Rose’s mobile app incubator Milk yesterday announced it was shutting down its only product, Oink. Google is not outright buying or “acqhiring” Milk, the sources explicitly said, but Rose and some others from the company have been hired. It’s not clear what will happen to Milk after Rose joins Google. (Link)PaymentsPayPal unveiled a new device that helps small businesses accept credit and debit cards through mobile devices. "PayPal Here" -- as the service is called -- will provide a free, triangle-shaped card reader and mobile application to small merchants. PayPal charges a fee of 2.7 percent of the purchase price for all types of credit and debit cards -- including those issued by American Express; transaction fees for processing AmEx cards are often higher on other services. That compares with the 2.75 percent charged by Square. (Link)Nokia, the world's largest handset maker by unit shipments, said it is planning to shut down its Mobile Financial Services business, including a Nokia Money service launched recently in India, as part of its strategy to move out of non-core business areas. Nokia didn't say when the unit will close. Nokia established the business in 2009 aimed at bringing secure electronic payments to people without a bank account, with a focus on emerging markets. (Link)Video/MusicLess than two weeks after a relaunch featuring deeper ties to Facebook, music video service Vevo is seeing a record number of video views per person and is now netting 3.5 billion total views a month. Vevo, the independent music video company created in partnership with Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and the Abu Dhabi Media Company, has seen video views per person jump 70 percent and Facebook sharing climb 100 percent since its March 9 relaunch. (Link)OtherThe Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) is headed to President Barack Obama’s desk. The House signed off on the final version of the package, aimed at helping small businesses and startups more easily raise capital by loosening various Securities and Exchange Commission regulations. (Link). In summary, the act: 1) increases opportunities for equity investment through crowdfunding; 2) it eases rules on public disclosure; 3) it makes it easier to go public. (Link)The Internet accounts for 4.7% of the U.S. economy and is projected to grow 6.5% a year through 2016, according to a new report. The Boston Consulting Group took a look at the top 20 global economies — also known as the “G-20″ — and found lots of reason for optimism. On average, the Internet economy is expected to grow 10.8% for the G-20. However, the expansion in developed countries like the U.S. will be on the low end, around 8%, while developing countries like Argentina and India will expand at rates of 24% and 23%, respectively. (Link)Recent M&APRIMEDIA, a premier renter resource for apartment and rental home information and listings, announced that it has entered into an agreement with eBay to acquire its Rent.comsubsidiary. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. PRIMEDIA’s websites and mobile applications will be complemented by Rent.com’s successful pay-for-performance business model. The combination will provide advertiser clients a more comprehensive suite of products that deliver cost-effective and high quality leads and leases. Rent.com adds another strong brand to PRIMEDIA’s extensive apartment and rental home resources, which include the web properties ApartmentGuide.com, Rentals.com and RentalHouses.com.Zynga announced it has acquired New York-based social game developer OMGPOP, makers of the popular cultural hit mobile game, Draw Something, and over 35 additional social games. As a part of the Zynga family, OMGPOP will focus on building new mobile IP and strengthening its existing portfolio of fun and creative social games. While Zynga is technically buying OMGPOP, the reality is that it's buying "Draw Something," a six-week old game that already has 35 million users, and generates $250,000 in revenue on a daily basis. That game caught Zynga's eye, and it won a small bidding war with Electronic Arts and Disney to close the deal, according to a few sources familiar with the deal.Amazon announced that it will acquire order fulfillment company Kiva Systems for $775 million in cash. Kiva Systems’ interconnected hardware and software package is designed to streamline the process of picking, packing and shipping e-Commerce products for delivery. The Company uses hundreds of autonomous mobile robots and a sophisticated control software, to provide a fulfillment system for retailers.Social gaming firm PlayPhone has added a marketing model in buying SocialHour, a social mobile marketing company, for $51.5 million. PlayPhone has already constructed a large social network for games across iOS, Android, Windows Phone 7 and HTML5. Gamers can meet and play against one another on the same games but across different operating systems, including the Web. The company claims to have had accumulated 3 million members just in the months leading to the December launch of the social gaming platform.Twitter announced that it had acquired the blogging platform Posterous. Similar to its main rival, Tumblr, the site allows users to easily add posts to their blogs via the web, the Posterous mobile app or by email. Twitter announced the acquisition on its blog: “Today we are welcoming a very talented group from Posterous to Twitter,” the post said. “Posterous engineers, product managers and others will join our teams working on several key initiatives that will make Twitter even better.” The precise terms of the deal were not revealed by either party.Youku, owner of China’s most- popular online video site, acquired smaller competitor Tudou Holdings in a $1 billion stock deal that will help lower costs for licensing and transmitting content. Holders of Tudou’s American depositary receipts will receive 1.595 ADRs of Youku for each Tudou ADR they own, the two companies said in a joint statement yesterday. The proposed deal will strengthen the new company’s ability to compete with Baidu Inc. (BIDU) and Tencent Holdings Ltd. (700) in adding online video users in a nation where Google Inc. (GOOG)’s YouTube is restricted. Youku and Tudou together accounted for more than a third of China’s Web video advertising revenue last quarter, according to research company Analysys International.Recent Private PlacementsPersonalized ads company, myThings, has raised $15 million from Iris Capital, Accel Partners, Carmel Ventures, and Deutsche Telecom.Online work platform, oDesk, raised $15 million from T. Rowe Price, Benchmark Capital, Globespan Capital Partners, and Sigma Partners.Integrate, startup that helps advertisers integrate ad channels, raised $11 million in Series B funding from Comcast Ventures, Liberty Group, and Foundry Group.Spigit, social innovation company, raised $15.2 million from Warburg Pincus.Mobile payments startup, Boku, raised $35 million from New Enterprise Associates, Telefonica, Andreessen Horowitz, Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, and Khosla Ventures.Online media publisher, Vox Media, owner of tech news site The Verge, sports blog network SB Nation, and game news site Vox Games, raised $17 million from undisclosed investors.Apperian, startup to help businesses build apps, raised $12.4 million from North Bridge Venture Partners, Kleiner Perkins, Bessemer Venture Partners, and CommonAngels.Video game tournament company, Major League Gaming, raised $13 million from undisclosed investors.Social investment network, eToro, picked up $15 million from Spark Capital, BRM, Guy Gamzu, and Jonathan Kolber.Online textbook seller, Chegg, raised $25 million in funding from undisclosed investors.ThinkEquity Research RecapRobert Coolbrith, Internet AnalystKIT digital, Inc. (KITD): Sell-Off Unwarranted, In Our View; Reiterate Buy (Link to Report)KITD reported 4Q11 earnings in line with the company's preanouncement. However, shares traded off yesterday (down 8% versus the NASDAQ up 0.5%), we believe in reaction to management's FCF guidance (indicating significant working capital consumption in FY12), a brief delay in the filing of the company's 10-K, and management discussion of potential incremental M&A. While the story remains "noisy," we continue to believe that the company's opportunity remains attractive/intact and, with shares now valued at 4.5x/3.3x FY12E/FY13E EBITDA, we believe downside is limited and risk-reward very attractive. We reiterate our Buy rating and $22 price targetVelti plc (VELT): Strong Q4, Solid Guide; Reiterate Buy (Link to Report)VELT reported a strong Q4 performance: the company significantly exceeded consensus forecasts for revenue/EBITDA/EPS, issued solid guidance essentially in-line with consensus forecasts (and implying continued rapid growth), and provided updated business metrics that represent a significant improvement in transparency, in our view. Despite a significant uptick in shares yesterday (up 27% versus the NASDAQ flat), we continue to see opportunity in the disconnect between the company's valuation (6.5x FY13E EBITDA) and the attractiveness of the company's business model/opportunity (35%+ 3-5 year revenue growth, continued margin expansion, SaaS-like predictability). We reiterate our Buy rating and $22 price target.Henry Guo, Internet AssociateSINA Corporation (SINA): We Believe Article Misinterprets Sina’s Commentary About Weibo Users (Link to Report)We believe a Reuters article misinterpreted Sina's commentary on the 60% number about its Weibo users, and believe investors should lower their expectations as the March 16 deadline nears. That said, we continue to feel incrementally positive on Weibo as the company clears real-name verification for users who have connected their mobile phone with their Weibo accounts. We estimate by now at least 11 million of daily active users (about 40% of total daily active users) have passed real-name verification. Longer term, while we continue to see the significant potential upside for SINA shares due to Weibo, we would rather closely monitor the user engagement on the platform after March 16, before we become aggressive on Weibo valuation.SINA Corporation (SINA): Incrementally Positive on Weibo as March 16 Deadline Nears; Raising PT (Link to Report)Sina has cleared real-name requirement for some Weibo users who had previously connected Weibo accounts with mobile phones. Now we estimate more than 11 million daily active users have their real-name accounts verified, exceeding our expectation. We modestly raise our Weibo valuation from $1.5B to $2.0B and PT from $78 to $88 on likely more than we expected real-name users by 2012. Longer term, while we continue to see the significant potential upside for SINA shares due to Weibo, we would rather closely monitor the user engagement on the platform after March 16, before we become aggressive on Weibo valuation.

Sorry. A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision stated that cellphones can be searched without probable cause or a warrant. If you are stopped, for any reason, they may look through the phone as long as they are legally detaining you. In other words, they can search it just as the would anything else on you or in your vehicle but without consent.Furthermore, they can data dump everything on it within minutes, which includes everything. If it is encrypted, they can then take their time and, if they find anything illegal, arrest you later based on that.ADDENDUMIn a subsequent comment to my answer, (can be read below) it was pointed out that a SCOTUS holding in Riley (2014) established the opposite of my claims. I promised to review that case, and did. The result of that review, the security briefing I received last month on the issue (raised by concerns over the Court's decision (not holding) to rehear the Carpenter (2018) case in the next session - I erroneously believed the case was heard on those grounds; it only affected those issues - has illustrated the need for clarification and more information.To fully understand what is happening, we have to look at the Riley case and the subsequent strategies Law Enforcement used to bypass it (I'll post their instructions they put out on their forums), the Supreme Court's knowledge of those tactics are evidenced by their concerns that it might be used to restrict those methods in the future (they wrote about in the dissent), why the arguments for rehearing are concerning, and how none of it ultimately matters, because too many doors have been left open for interpretation: meaning, they will still be able to do as I originally said. But it's interesting to hear it in their own words.Some terminology: there are searches and seizures “Incident to a lawful arrest". There is a “Reasonable expectation of privacy", which has two requirements but is, unlike the first, a 4th Ammendment defence.Each has some dubious and contradictory applications by the courts. For instance, while someone may have a privacy interest in an object, they can still be found to have no rights concerning its seizure this way: Citing United States v. Robinson, the Fifth Circuit said, “it is well-settled law that “police officers are not constrained to search only for weapons or instruments of escape on the arrestee’s person; they may also, without any additional justification, look for evidence on the arrestee’s person in order to preserve it for use at trial .. The permissible scope of a search incident to a lawful arrest extends to containers found on the arrestee’s person.”But what constitutes arrest or even “incident to" (i.e. time) was frittered away: “The appeals court added: “The fact that the search took place after the police transported Finley to Brown’s residence does not alter our conclusion … In general, as long as the administrative processes incident to the arrest and custody have not been completed, a search of effects seized from the defendant’s person is still incident to the defendant’s arrest. Although the police had moved Finley, the search was still substantially contemporaneous with his arrest and was therefore permissible.”The Fifth Circuit was forced to do the “Ali shuffle” around the firmly established rule pronounced by the Supreme Court in United States v. Chadwick.”April 14, 2017 by The Legality“But what about the messages that are on your phone right now? They may be fair game: recent decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court and several federal circuit courts suggest that cell phone searches, when performed incident to a lawful arrest, can be reasonable and constitutional under the Fourth Amendment.”In Michigan, 3 years after Riley, their high court affirmed this, citing regulations that nullify (in their opinion) the 4th Ammendment:The court considered the case of Michael Corbin, who, along with a co-defendant, was convicted of a 2011 double homicide and armed robbery in Boston. Under a federal statute that allows the government to access some electronic information, police sought and obtained an order to get the cellphone information of people — including Corbin — who had been in contact with one of the victims. ( reference is to18 U.S. Code§ 2703. Required disclosure of customer communications or records. Allows obtaining records if federal rules of regulations are followed - without warrant - or Administrativrme rules.)The state had argued that it could use the federal statute to access Corbin's texts without a warrant because the messages were stored by a cellphone service provider. The SJC rejected that argument, and said even under that same statute, a warrant was required for the text messages in this case.”There are outright exceptions, as well.“At border crossings and airports, the Fourth Amendment doesn’t apply to U.S. citizens. Luggage can be rifled through, questions can be asked, and cell phones can be searched through. Although cell phone searches at borders haven’t always been a priority, they are becoming increasingly more popular. In 2015, there were fewer than 5,000 cell phone searches at borders. But in 2016, the number jumped to almost 25,000. In February 2017, there were more cell phone searches than in the entirety of 2015. Border agents who ask for cell phone to be turned over have been known to occasionally become forceful if their request is denied. Threats of arrest may also occur until the cell phones are surrendered.” - Romanolawpc.com.Following the Riley case, PoliceOne posted the following:Be Advised...with Doug Wyllie, PoliceOne Senior ContributorThe Court's decision on cell phone searches: 3 things cops need to knowThe Supreme Court unanimously ruled that with the exception of some emergency circumstances, police must obtain a warrant before searching the contents of a cell phone seized from someone who has been arrestedJun 25, 2014The ruling addressed two separate cases — Riley v. California and U.S. v. WurieBut does the ruling — clearly resounding ‘win’ for proponents of digital and personal privacy — significantly hamper law enforcement? Yes and no (mostly no).PoliceOne Contributor Morris Greenbergadded, “This decision doesn’t preclude law enforcement of seizing a cell phone as evidence — it only precludes a warrantless search absent exigent circumstance.”Now pay very close attention to what was posted by their counsel: “Why tempt fate?” Greenberg asked. “If a warrant can be written — and the evidence flowing out of that be upheld as a result of the warrant — why not do it!?” - ibid. They were discussing the justification of a warrant after-the-fact of gaining evidence to support the warrant (probable cause) which would then satisfy the seizure they obtained the support from.Next stated was this: “It is the intervention of the neutral and detached magistrate in the search warrant process that will satisfy the reasonableness standard of the Fourth Amendment,” LoRusso explained.The Carpenter decision in 2018 was hailed as the decision that finally put an end to the shenanigans, but, as one columnist forecasted, it was not:“We hold only that a warrant is required in the rare case where the suspect has a legitimate privacy interest in records held by a third party,” the chief justice wrote. The court’s four more liberal members — Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — joined his opinion.Chief Justice Roberts left open the question of whether limited government requests for location data required a warrant. But he said that access to seven days of data is enough to raise Fourth Amendment concerns.This unmasks a little-known practice that still exists: that there is no privacy interest (and therefore 4th Ammendment violation) when the data searched is less than seven days old.Listen to what else was revealed as a concern by dissenting judges: this concern references real cellphone data collection most people think are private:Justice Anthony M. Kennedy said the distinctions drawn by the majority were illogical and “will frustrate principled application of the Fourth Amendment in many routine yet vital law enforcement operations.”“Cell-site records,” he wrote, “are uniquely suited to help the government develop probable cause to apprehend some of the nation’s most dangerous criminals: serial killers, rapists, arsonists, robbers and so forth.”This is an admission of lack of probable cause in the quest to seize and search for the purpose of gaining something to give probable cause!LA Times articleBy DAVID G. SAVAGEJUN 22, 2018 | 3:35 PMWASHINGTONIt is not clear how the ruling will affect other disputes over electronic information. Roberts said the decision in Carpenter vs. United States was a “narrow one” that applied only to cellphone tracking data [obtained from third party carriers]. The dissenters warned the rule inevitably will expand to shield other types of electronic data — a forecast that many privacy advocates hope will prove accurate.The case prompted a sharp and deep divide within the court over how what is meant by an “unreasonable search.”Getting It Wrong On Cell Phone Searchesby Richard A. EpsteinMonday, June 25, 2018The Supreme Court last week added another layer of confusion to the vexed law of unreasonable searches and seizures regarding law-enforcement use of cell phone data to ferret out criminal activity. In Carpenter v. United States, Chief Justice John Roberts, speaking for a five-member majority (including the four liberal justices—Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and Sotomayor), ruled that information collected on Timothy Carpenter’s whereabouts, pursuant to the Stored Communications Act (SCA), was inadmissible. The SCA allows law enforcement to access certain telephone company records under a court order when it “offers specific and articulable facts showing that there are reasonable grounds to believe” that the records sought “are relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation.” Notwithstanding the SCA, police can now access historical cell-site location information (CSLI) only if they first obtain a warrant by meeting the higher standard of probable cause under the Fourth Amendment.Unfortunately, in arguing Carpenter, the government did not offer the right analysis. Instead, it invoked what is commonly called “the third-party doctrine” to insist that Carpenter had no “reasonable expectation of privacy” because he had voluntarily turned over that data to a third party, namely the phone company. On its view, the government does not even have to show reasonable grounds for the search: sharing the data counts as a complete waiver of all Fourth Amendment rights. As I have long argued, and Justice Neil Gorsuch explicitly accepted in his dissent, the government’s argument distorts the notions of consent and assumption of risk. It is perfectly common for people to turn over information to third parties on the express or implied condition that those third parties will keep it confidential. It is therefore preposterous to give the government unfettered access to that information. Such a rule would mean that any information stored in the cloud could be accessed by the government on demand—sheer constitutional overkill.It is odd for the Chief Justice to go out of his way to tolerate a government search that is likely to lead to real abuse, while blocking well-conceived access of routine, non-confidential business records for no good reason at all. It is all too easy to claim that changed technological circumstances require scrapping old doctrines. But in this, as in so many other areas, that hasty conclusion is wrong. Get the conceptual foundations right the first time, and the resulting doctrine will prove more durable and sensible than the Chief Justice’s confused Carpenter decision. It is time for the Court to redo Fourth Amendment law from the ground up.”What did Law Enforcement have to say?Cop Gumbowith Val Van BrocklinSupreme Court recognizes a new expectation of privacy in the digital ageThe opinion suggests a shifting landscape for police searches and seizuresJul 16, 2018“The Carpenter decision does have limits.The majority suggested that less than 7 days of records might not constitute a search for Fourth Amendment purposes.The opinion did not extend to real-time CSLI, “tower dumps” (a download of information on all devices that connected to a particular cell site during a particular interval), or other business records that might incidentally reveal location information.Nor did it call into question conventional surveillance techniques and tools, such as security cameras.The decision acknowledged exigent circumstances could establish an exception to the warrant requirement, e.g., a fleeing suspect, to protect individuals who are threatened with imminent harm, or prevent the imminent destruction of evidence. Bomb threats, active shootings and child abductions could fall within the exception.The opinion did not address collection techniques involving foreign affairs or national security.”And we know how much falls under that heading. If criminal activity is discovered while searching that, it is enough for probable cause on a separate matter.What has been happening since Riley is cops are gaining cellphones from drivers pulled over for minor offence, their cellphones searched under various pretexts, and then any numbers or texts to a criminal, suspect or establishing a tertiary relationship, is then used for arrest and justification of the search.Here is an analysis of one resulting action:April 14, 2017 by The Legality“But what about the messages that are on your phone right now? They may be fair game: recent decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court and several federal circuit courts suggest that cell phone searches, when performed incident to a lawful arrest, can be reasonable and constitutional under the Fourth Amendment.Today, the answer to that question hinges on whether or not the search was a violation of an individuals reasonable expectation of privacy. Determining whether the individuals expectation of privacy was reasonable involves questions both subjective (did the individual actually expect privacy?) and objective (is society ready to recognize that expectation as a reasonable one?). For example, you have the reasonable expectation that your personal mail will remain private from the postman’s prying eyes, and society generally agrees that no one else should open your mail. Alternatively, it would be fairly unreasonable to expect that anything written on the outside of the envelope you mailed would remain equally private.Because law enforcement officers have an interest both in ensuring their own safety (by searching for potential weapons) and in preserving evidence of a possible crime, a search completed incident to a lawful arrest is exempted from the warrant requirement and is presumptively reasonable, thus sidestepping the objective/subjective test entirely. That leads to the key question: just what can an officer search?Because an officer is presumed to know whats appropriate in the circumstances, whether and how to conduct a search during an arrest is left largely to a police officers discretion. Of course, not everything an officer finds will be admissible in a criminal proceeding there are limitations, but during an arrest the officers discretion is fairly wide, and generally gives an officer power to search your person or the area immediately within your control regardless of whether you are being arrested for something as minor as dirty mud flaps or as major as multiple homicide. Several courts have held this search can extend to closed containers, glove compartments, packages of cigarettes,“ and yes, even cell phones.Back to Romanolawpc and their generous, assessment of one's rights (this ignores the work-around police developed), they said, “In the Riley v. California case, the decision led to requiring a warrant before searching a suspect’s smartphone.This prompted the expansion of possessions needing warrants, and thus cell phone search warrants became necessary. A police officer can seize your cell phone without a warrant. However, they are unable to view anything on the device without a cell phone search warrant.Text messages are fair game for police if they want them. In order to obtain text messages, police can go to the cell phone carrier with either a subpoena or court order (warrants are not necessary). Some phone services, such as AT&T and Verizon, do charge a fee for the records being obtained.When it comes to what is safe from the police’s prying eyes when cell phone searches occur, photos are fair game. Even if you delete photos off your cell phone, they are still able to be tracked down and uncovered. When photographs are deleted from a cell phone, they still can remain in areas of the flash chip called solid state memory. With the proper forensic software team, police can easily recover deleted data.LA Times articleBy DAVID G. SAVAGEJUN 22, 2018 | 3:35 PMWASHINGTONIt is not clear how the ruling will affect other disputes over electronic information. Roberts said the decision in Carpenter vs. United States was a “narrow one” that applied only to cellphone tracking data [obtained from third party carriers]. The dissenters warned the rule inevitably will expand to shield other types of electronic data — a forecast that many privacy advocates hope will prove accurate.The case prompted a sharp and deep divide within the court over how what is meant by an “unreasonable search.”Most people don't know about Stingrays. There are hundreds in every major city. When it comes to third-parties that you share data with, what do you do when the third party is the government that holds it all as a middleman?Chicago TribuneBut in the Windy City, the Chicago Police Department will run into trouble -- for several years the department has used cell site simulators (commonly known as IMSI catchers or Stingray devices) to scan cellphones for call logs, which include text messages, the Chicago Tribune reported, also noting that although sources confirm the simulators' use, the city has never publicly acknowledged having the equipment.Stingrays don't scan. They act as cell towers smartphones are incapable of differentiating from real towers, that connect all the traffic to and from phones. Your phone hooks up to it as it would the nearest tower. There are almost a dozen within a 4 block radius of me. Why and what for and by whom, I don't know.But, that isn't the end of all the tricks and controversy making their way through the courts. Here is a posting on a LE forum about 2 such cases:Cop Gumbowith Val Van BrocklinHow 2 recent SCOTUS cases could change police search and seizureTwo cases recently argued before SCOTUS could narrow or expand warrantless searches – and they could reach back to what police are doing now.2018 started off with a double-feature in the U.S. Supreme Court starring the Fourth Amendment and police authority to search and seize. (Photo/Pixabay).Feb 2, 2018COLLINS V. VIRGINIAMotorcyclist Ryan Collins whizzed by an officer at 140 mph, eluding efforts to stop him. The officer did get photos and a license plate number. After seeing images of the parked bike on Collins’ Facebook page, the officer tracked it to the home of his girlfriend where Collins spent several nights a week. There the officer saw the Suzuki in the driveway nosing out from under a tarp, walked up, and uncovered it. The license plate and VIN confirmed it was the motorcycle – and that it was stolen.This case pits the automobile exception to a warrant requirement against the Fourth Amendment’s protection of a home and its curtilage from warrantless searches.The automobile exception arose out of a 1925 traffic stop. Because vehicles are mobile and, the Supreme Court added in 1985, carry a diminished expectation of privacy for their occupants, police may search them on the spot without a warrant when they have probable cause to believe they contain evidence of a crime.Collins’ attorney conceded the officer had probable cause to believe the motorcycle he saw from the street was the one that had eluded him. He argued a competing Fourth Amendment principle trumped the automobile exception – that when officers go to a residence to look for contraband, even mobile contraband (such as drugs), they need a warrant absent exigent circumstances.The Virginia Supreme Court did not rule on whether exigent circumstances existed, relying instead on a categorical application of the automobile exception. Accordingly, the government was limited to that argument before the U.S. Supreme Court.The government’s attorney acknowledged the long-standing warrant requirement protection of homes and their curtilage, but argued the motorcycle was readily mobile and Collins had less expectation of privacy in it parked outside his girlfriend’s house in view of the street than what the Court had decided in previous curtilage cases. The attorney concluded that if the Court wanted to limit the categorical automobile exception, it should draw that line between the home and the curtilage.Justices Sotomayor, Gorsuch, and Kagan seemed reluctant to draw a new, bright line between the home and curtilage. As Sotomayor asked,“Even if the police know that the driver of this car is away on vacation and won’t be returning for two weeks, they’re not required to go to a magistrate and get a warrant?”BYRD V. UNITED STATESTerence Byrd was driving his fiancée’s rental car when a trooper pulled him over for driving too long in the left lane while passing, and “suspiciously” keeping his hands in the 10-2 positions on the steering wheel.During the stop, Byrd acted nervous and admitted he had a marijuana cigarette in the car. Troopers decided to search the car, advising Byrd they didn’t need his consent because the rental agreement didn’t authorize him as a driver. In the trunk, troopers found body armor and heroin, which Byrd acknowledged he had planned to sell.Byrd’s attorney argued the rental agreement didn’t determine Byrd’s constitutional rights. What mattered was whether Byrd had a reasonable expectation of privacy when, with the permission of his fiancée, he put his belongings in the trunk.…………………………..All of these situations have been used to justify cellphone searches.The Supreme Court decisions are being narrowed continually. What constitutes personal property, privacy interest, arrest, incidental to arrest, suspicion, etc., are all becoming subjective to the officer’s interpretation.Furthermore, the “preservation of evidence" that may be evidence of a crime is a classic standby. They just seize a phone on suspicion of containing evidence (one case the officer said the person just left a house they knew housed a person who sometimes dealt drugs - no drugs found - to take the driver's phone), said suspicion open to whatever the cop says. Then wait for the evidence to give probable cause for the search that will turn up the needed evidence to support the warrant…for the search.The big concern raised last month was over the arguments that led to SCOTUS agreeing to rehear Carpenter. It was clear there is a push to shift the grounds away from a constitutional one in order to prevent a precedent-based ruling (concerning cellphone data) being used or broadened later.

Image Source: EngineerBabuWhat do we look for while traveling to a new place? We look forward to a new thrilling experience but at the most economical rate. Imagine that you can find all of it on one platform, A Home away from Home.What is Airbnb?Airbnb is a travel app which provides a platform for apartment rental opportunities all over the world. Airbnb serves as a tempting marketplace for owners of property and people seeking short-term accommodation. Airbnb has changed the way people tend to look for apartments. It provides captivating opportunities for property owners and travelers. This digital platform serves as an interactive environment for people i.e. the Hosts who earn by renting their property to guests who are looking for affordable accommodation. Airbnb is functional over 190 countries worldwide. That’s the major reason that in no time, it has completely conquered the global market.Airbnb business model canvasMajor associates:Host — People who own a house or property and want to lease/rent them. Airbnb receives Commission from hosts upon every booking.Guests — Travelers, families going for a vacation and or official work who want to stay comfortably at affordable prices. They receive a commission from guests upon every booking.Freelance Photographers — Airbnb has a varied network of freelance photographers in most of the cities across the globe. Once the host lists their place on the portal, these photographers are hired to take high-quality pictures of the property. They are directly paid from the Airbnb portal.Target audienceTravelers who need a simple affordable placeBusiness travelersTravelers with familiesTravelers looking to explore new places.People looking for extra income who can hosts to earn.Channels of DistributionWebsiteMobile app on both iOS and Android platformsDigital marketingSocial mediaPromotionsCost StructureMaintenance of the online platformEmployees (Airbnb has over 2000 employees)Online payment platforms like to MasterCard, Visa, and PayPalMarketing and promotional activitiesInsuranceAccording to the latest stats, the company now has:Over 100 million users640,000 hostsAround 2 million listings500,000 guests stay per night via Airbnb10 billion miles of travel to Airbnb destinations191 countries and 65,000 cities Airbnb are actively involved in.Estimated revenue of $900 millionImage Source: DribbbleRequired features to be included in an App like AirbnbGuests/TravelersLog-in / Sign-up — The users are supposed to log in with their pre-registered IDs or create a new account by filling their details like name, number, etc. they can also sign in via their email address or social media channels.Manage account — Edit, manage and update personal profile information like email id, mobile number, date of birth, gender, permanent address, etc. The account password can also be changed.Chat and push notifications — Like any other messaging app, Airbnb provided instant notifications for chats.Search Filter — Users can look for desired accommodation by filtering their travel like Dates, room type, price range, required amenities etc.Host interaction — Users can communicate with their host via messages even before booking their stay. They also have the liberty to accept or decline offers and create new requests.Payments — Users can select the payment method and can access the receipts and pay details of the transaction. They can also view every transaction history. They can switch to the desired currency too.Create wish lists/Saved — Missed out a place due to high rental or non-availability. No worries, you can wishlist them and get notified if the rental falls.Booking — Also, the booking done by a user can be checked. It can a past cooking or an upcoming one.Coupons — Coupons can be used during checkout. These coupons can be earned by referral codes.Maps — Airbnb simplifies the booking process with maps. They help in showcasing the location with rentals, around the area the user wishes to stay in.Help — Users can view the FAQs sections and ask for help in case of any confusion with the booking or in case of seeking any booking or hosts related help.Rate and Review — Users can share their experience with the hosts by rating and reviewing them.Sharing — Users can invite friends to through social media accounts to download the app.Image Source: Dribbble — George VasyaginNew AdditionsThese features can also be added to make it stand out even the more.Receive SMS Notifications — Users can receive messages to notify them about their booking and also promotional offers.Supplementary — While making an app like Airbnb, more social media channels and payment methods can be integrated with it.Hosts AppRegistration — The Host can fill in their details and register themselves by listing their vacant property.Log-in or Sign-up — The hosts are supposed to log in with their pre-registered ids or create a new account by filling their details like name, number, address etc. They can also sign in via their email address or social media channels.Manage Personal page and profile information — Edit, manage and update personal profile information like email id, mobile number, address, etc. The account password can also be changed.Manage listings — The listings i.e. the property details like the amenities available and pricing can be handled under this section. New pictures can be uploaded whenever required.Booking Listing — All the upcoming bookings can be seen in a systematic way, in form of a calendar view. Each date of the month will showcase the bookings.Request — This is a passage for accepting or declining the user’s request for your space.Messaging feature — Hosts can freely communicate with their guests through the chat feature. They can revert to all the queries of the guests even before booking or confirming their stay. Create and send new requests to guests.Rate and review guests — Each guest can be rated and reviewed according to their behavior and conduct.Account Details — This helps in adding or removing information in the account.Help — Guest can view the FAQs sections and ask for help in case of any confusion with the listing of their property or in case of seeking any booking or guest related help.Sharing — Hosts can invite friends to through social media accounts to download the app.Booking History — All the previous bookings and the payments received can be tracked down here. Also, the revenue generated can be estimated.Admin PanelDashboard — The admin dashboard to view all the users registered(new and old), hosts(new and old) and the photographers.Manage new listing — All the new listing uploaded are scrutinised and processed further. The admin panel provides the liberty to edit, add or delete listings, according to the need.Booking History — All the previous and new bookings can be checked here. There’s also an update on the current status of each reservation. These can also be edited, updated or deleted.Feedback and complaints — All the feedback provided by the guest and hosts can be viewed here. Any complaints with regard to the hosts or guests can be processed here.Insights — All the details of the previous and current activities can be observed here. These detailed insights help in future decisions.The Technology required for building an app like AirbnbImage Source: DribbbleProgramming languages — Ruby, JavaScript, HTML5, CSS3Application Framework — Ruby on RailsJavaScript Framework — React.jsAutomation Frameworks — RSpec, Capybara, PhantomJSSQL data storage — PostgreSQLGlobal Payment — BraintreeMessaging & Communication — TwilioCloud Storage — Amazon S3, EBSCloud Hosting — Amazon EC2Voice and SMS API for SMS, Voice and Phone Verification — NexmoKnow the major CompetitorsWith the growing popularity of Airbnb, there are several more who offer short-term home rentals platforms out there. We have covered the most prominent, Airbnb like hosting platforms. Check out these alternatives!HomeawayHomeaway has over a million listings around the globe and its presence in 190 countries. It is considered to be the main competitor of Airbnb as it provides all the services that Airbnb offers and also has its own insurance program. it’ owned by Expedia and it operates regional sites like VRBO, TravelMob and VacationRentals. It has a lot of upscale listings.FlipKeyFlipkey is a major company run by TripAdvisor. It has a large number of users and the highest quality manual verification program by the websites employees. The “vacation rental marketplace,” as called, has been expanding with almost 3,00,000 properties in about 160 countries. It doesn’t offer shared rooms but has unique property filters like dog-friendly, kid-friendly, or waterfront property.RoomoramaThis Singapore-based vacation rental company may not be as large as Airbnb but offers about 80,000 properties worldwide. All their apartments and homes are instantly bookable. They focus mainly on the security and claim all their hosts are 100% verified. The guests can take advantage of local deals and perks which is not yet a feature at Airbnb.How much does it cost to build an app like AirbnbIt is a task to analyze the cost of development of a mobile app like Airbnb. The entire design of the app is split into several parts based on the specifications required. The cost of development of a popular app like Airbnb depends on the following factors:Image Source: EngineerBabuThe size of the teamIf the team is small and functional, the process can go smooth. Let’s say, the project manager handling more than his part. Else, other than a designer and developer, a lot more people like project manager, system administrator, quality assurance member will be required in the team.The number of platforms the app is being built forThe cost of building an app like Airbnb fluctuates based on different platforms. iOS, Android both need different app screens to adjust the app too. All this is decided based on the target audience, device environment, etc. Moreover, android app development takes a little more time than iOS as it has more devices to be tested against.Features and Functionality of the appAnother important factor in development is the features and functionalities one wishes to incorporate. Basic features like past booking history, reviews, and ratings, data of the hosts, communication between the host and traveler, etc. occupy a lot of space and result in a surplus charge.Design of the appAirbnb being a big app, has to look good to attract the customers all around the global market. It should leave a long lasting impression on the mind of the viewer to lure them into making reservations. The app should be easy to use and the design has to be engaging. Another aspect os the design is whether its standard or customized. New, unique visuals can be added instead of the stereotype backdrop. New designs will definitely shoot the development price.DevelopersThe most vital point is, where are you looking for the developers. The place or location of the developer is one of the deciding factor. Also, the cost will vary based on the experience of the developer and his/her expertise.In-app purchases and any other special features.Any technical complexity that you desire to add, be it simple, medium or high, will affect the costing. Different features like geolocation, data sync, booking calendar, in-app calling, etc. will definitely give a raise to your budget.Above, was just a basic analysis of the factors that might affect the cost of development. To determine the pricing of the application, an estimated development cost will be calculated with the approximate time required for creating each feature. The development time is calculated in hours and the rate per hour varies from company to company. Each company has its own rate per hour. I am considering an average price of development per hour $30, based on worldwide standards. Now let’s assume we are building an app solely for iOS platform.1. The TeamA minimum team will include:1 UI designer1 iOS developer1 back-end developer1 project manager1 Quality Assurance EngineerThe app architectureImage Source: Dribbble — Sarah ChudawalaNext, we determine the app architecture. Every project commences with initial action steps. We can calculate the hours per step by diving the app into different components based on the overall app resources, modules and technical base used.20 hours — Project setup20–25 hours — REST API implementation10 hours — Database model10 -15 hours — Implementation of services and librariesDevelopment effort estimationRegistration/login feature — The basic step is registration so that the user will be able to access the app. To start using the app, it would be seeking the agreement of the user with the conditions and policies besides the other fundamental details. This would consume around 10 to 12 hours.2. User ProfileThe user profiles will be of two kinds, guest and host (owner of the place). Both have to create their profiles by filling in their personal details like-NameGenderE-mail addressBirth dateTelephone numberPermanent living addressPersonal description3. FiltersThe listings and search filters can be used by hosts as well as users. A host can add information on the house type, room type, accommodation details, photos, pricing, etc. if user is looking for a place to stay in, they will require details about housing like location, check in and check out dates, house type, and size, amenities, host language, photos of the home, price range, etc. as this feature is vast, developers can take up to 24 hours to build it.Image Source: Dribbble4. Accommodation DescriptionAfter the filtered have been chosen, a wide variety of search results will pop with various options and description of the rooms you wish to stay in. The variants are as follows-PhotosMap with the locationAccommodationHost ProfileAmenities offered or availableRatingReviewsPriceTerms and conditionsAvailable dates5. MapsMaps allow the users to freely search for a perfect location, check various spots on the maps, and spot a place to stay. Map localization helps to see the routes, neighborhoods, and amenities in proximity to the location. All these help in choosing the desired place to stay in.6. SettingsThe users can customize and configure their preference under this feature. The settings menu allows you to control the following functions-Push notificationsSMS notificationsUpdates on rental options in a specific areaConversation with the host(messages)Wish-listsPayment method and currency7. Invite FriendsA user can easily invite a friend to download the application and join it.8. Add to FavoritesThis is a fundamental feature by which the user can bookmark certain results and add them to favorites and view them later.9. Translate FeatureThis feature helps the user to translate the description of the rooms into their preferred language. It is enabled through the Google translator, the text is sent to google translator and translated into the chosen language.10. Guide FeatureThis personalized feature shows the sites and neighborhoods around the chosen location. It shows the locations around that can be visited.11. Property ListingOnce you sign up as a host, you need to fill in all the required details, the app will show you the approximate rent you can charge for your house/apartment/room.12. Back endThe server-side part of the app is very crucial as the product requires time to configuration from both client and server side. The client side is how it will virtually interact with a user and the server side includes its functionalities, server connections, etc. the back end is the most time-consuming part of the entire process.So, what’s our grand total?Image Source: Dribbble — Ueno.After having dealt with all features and modules, we have reached an estimate of the development cost. each a total cost of $28140 — $30840. Which is approximately $29000 — $31000 considering the $30 per hour as the average rate for counting the cost. However, this can vary depending on the mobile app development company and the technology they use. Moreover, the hourly rates differ from country to country.After looking at all the aspects and stages of development, we may say building an app is not an easy and swift task. However, if all the things are lined up in a proper manner, not only will it be super successful but also very affordable. In case you have some queries about the cost of building an App Like Airbnb, let us know your exact requirements here and we will let you know the estimate.EngineerBabu, being an experienced app development company, Airbnb-like apps are now just a piece of cake for us.If you wish to hire our team of experts, we are just a call away!Our clients are highly innovative and we respect them for coming up with innovative challenges for us. Spare some time to know about our creative solutions to various technological challenges with our case studies here.Did you hear what our clients have to say about us? Get to know us better by reading the work experience of our clients with us.Here is our complete library of innovative mobile apps which we have developed for our clients across the world. Feel free to ask for a demo and we will help you with it.We would love to be your app development partners. Please drop a detailed inquiry about your requirements and our team will get back to you as soon as possible to discuss further on the development.On a scale of yay to nay, how helpful did you find this guide? Please share your views in the comment section below and we would appreciate your efforts.Did we miss out on an aspect or two? We’d love to expand our knowledge.Originally Published on EngineerBabu Blog.