WSJ.com: “Feds Argue Using a Fake Name Can Deprive You of Rights”

WSJ.com: Feds Argue Using a Fake Name Can Deprive You of Rights by Jennifer Valentino-DeVries:

Does using a fake name when you sign up for a cellphone plan mean the government can get information from your phone without a warrant?

That’s one argument the Department of Justice is making in an Arizona case – that using a false name is fraud and means you don’t have a reasonable expectation of privacy.

Such a stance might raise questions about the widespread practice of using pseudonyms to sign up for services online. But legal experts said it’s unlikely a court would take the argument that far.

The case, which the Journal first covered in an article last year, involves the use of a cellphone-tracking device called a stingray to find a mobile broadband card that the government says was being used to file fraudulent tax returns.

Update: Not the first time the government has argued it. I’ve seen and posted cases dealing with false names to rent cars and likely hotel rooms as depriving someone of an expectation of privacy. See Use of stolen ID to rent storage unit defeated expectation of privacy.