How police can obtain your records without a subpoena

Over at Wired News, David Kravets writes about the administrative subpoena, a nifty legal tool that allows government agents to access sensitive personal data without court warrants if agents believe the data is “relevant” to an investigation.

"With a federal official’s signature, banks, hospitals, bookstores, telecommunications companies and even utilities and internet service providers — virtually all businesses — are required to hand over sensitive data on individuals or corporations, as long as a government agent declares the information is relevant to an investigation. Via a wide range of laws, Congress has authorized the government to bypass the Fourth Amendment — the constitutional guard against unreasonable searches and seizures that requires a probable-cause warrant signed by a judge.