Sponsors (2)
The bill strengthens individual privacy, oversight, and safeguards for public‑safety communications at the cost of added compliance burdens, potential delays in urgent law‑enforcement uses, and risks of evidence exclusion that could hinder some prosecutions.
Individuals (including uninsured people, immigrants, and people with disabilities) will have stronger digital privacy because the bill bars warrantless domestic use of cell‑site simulators and requires warrants that narrowly specify geographic area, time, and necessity, reducing incidental collection of bystanders' data.
Victims of unlawful cell‑site simulator operations will be able to seek civil remedies (damages up to $500 per violation and injunctive relief), giving individuals a private right of action to challenge abuses.
Taxpayers and government stakeholders will get more transparency and oversight because the bill requires annual Inspector General reports on authorized and emergency uses, numbers of devices targeted, and retention of non‑target data.
Parents, families, and the general public could face delayed or constrained emergency responses because requirements to promptly obtain warrants, 30‑day limits, and reporting rules may slow urgent use of cell‑site simulators to locate missing persons or respond to imminent threats.
Victims and communities could see prosecutions weakened or evidence excluded because the bill's exclusionary remedy for unlawfully obtained data may lead to dismissal of cases when alternate evidence is limited.
Law enforcement, federal employees, and local governments will face higher costs and slower investigations because agencies must comply with new warrant procedures, testing certifications, and reporting requirements.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Prohibits most use of cell‑site simulators unless a narrow warrant or defined emergency exception applies; adds penalties and suppresses evidence obtained unlawfully.
Official title: Amend title 18, United States Code, to regulate the use of cell-site simulators, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 29, 2025 by Ronald Lee Wyden · Last progress July 29, 2025
Makes it a federal crime to use a cell‑site simulator (sometimes called a Stingray) in the United States except under narrow, court‑authorized warrants or limited emergency exceptions, and limits when the intelligence community may use such devices abroad against U.S. persons. Creates a criminal penalty up to $250,000, bars admission of evidence obtained in violation (with a narrow exception to prosecute the offender), and imposes detailed warrant, duration, and reporting requirements for lawful uses.