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Technology can be a wonderful thing. It can also be gruesome, especially if the law doesn’t keep pace…
Technology can be a wonderful thing. It can also be gruesome, especially if the law doesn’t keep up with innovations. Ohio lawmakers appear to be working to address one of these shortcomings, as the House of Representatives just passed Senate Bill 100, which makes it a crime to place or install a tracking device on someone else’s property without their consent.
Sounds like common sense, right? But until the measure is enshrined in law, using, for example, an Apple AirTag to assist in stalking a victim is not in itself a crime.
According to a report from the Ohio Capital Journal, a stalking case in Akron turned deadly when an ex-boyfriend used an AirTag he placed on his victim’s car to track her. A private investigator hired by the victim found the AirTag, but by then it was too late. Even if the AirTag had been brought to the police at the time it was discovered, Akron police would not have been able to act, as using an electronic tracker on someone’s car without their knowledge was not a crime at the time.
When SB 100 becomes law, using a tracking device without a person’s consent will be a first-degree felony, which could be elevated to a fourth-degree felony if stalking is a pattern or if there is a history of violence by the is the perpetrator.
“It’s important to implement this so that we can protect those potential victims and ensure that these air tags are used for good things and not for stalking-type situations,” said state Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville, according to the Capital Journal.
Governor Mike DeWine certainly won’t waste any time signing the measure. In the meantime, lawmakers should consider how many other malicious uses of otherwise useful technology have flown under the radar. Unfortunately, the possibilities are probably greater than they can stay on top of. But at least in this case they should be commended for trying.
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