Data-protection methodology has been with humans for thousands of years, but only recently has it increasingly become a ubiquitous part of our technology-driven lives. Clearly, statutes and regulations have recently evolved mandating its regular use in various arenas of the business world, but even the everyday consumer faces the reality that security hardware and software come with such technology already built-in.

Inevitably, legal issues have begun to arise regarding this form of technology. Least surprising, search-and-seizure issues regarding law enforcement's attempts to circumvent data-protection methods are at the forefront. The first-half of 2017 has produced some interesting results and court analyses.¹

Non-Alteration Techniques

Prior to evaluating these court rulings, however, it is first important to clarify the differences between the most common data-protection techniques. At times, the legal system has not been entirely clear in identifying the precise technique at issue in a legal decision, and these differences in how data-protection operates and what can be done to circumvent a particular technology can have significant consequences.

Certain methods do nothing to alter the original data; they just make it difficult for a human to see it. The first type of such information protection dates back to over 400 years B.C. “Steganography,” which is Greek for “to hide in plain sight,” means literally that. The data is there, and it has not been changed. You just have to know how to find it.