your passcode can take the fifth, but not your finger

VA court gives tech savvy criminals the finger

Now, here is a head scratcher… a circuit court in Virginia has ruled that while law enforcement cannot force you to reveal the passcode for your mobile phone, they CAN force you to unlock your phone with a fingerprint, since a passcode requires you to divulge knowledge while a fingerprint is a form of physical evidence.  While this seemingly nonsensical decision is not binding on other courts, it can be used as precedent in future cases.  I guess the moral of the story is that you should disable TouchID on your iPhone before embarking on your life of mobile phone assisted crime.  Alternatively, you could reboot your iPhone as John Q Law closes in, since TouchID will not work until you have entered your passcode after a reboot.

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