In April of this year Utah governor Gary Herbert launched a new initiative tracking anyone that came into the state. Once an individual with a smart phone crossed the Utah border, a notification would pop up on their phone telling them to fill out a list of questions many felt were invasive such as where are you going, how long will you be there and who is with you.
I am issuing an order this week in advance of Easter weekend requiring all individuals who are 18 years or older to complete a COVID-19 travel declaration form when entering our state. This will be required at the airport, and on our roadways. #utcovid19 #StaySafe #StayHome
— Gov. Gary Herbert (@GovHerbert) April 8, 2020
Defending Utah covered the controversy in the following video report:
Shortly after the alerts started, it received opposition from people worried about privacy and civil liberties. The alert system was also full of its own internal problems as reported by the Deseret News.
Many thought they could feel a sense of relief under the false impression the state was no longer spying on them. What many don’t know is that the state of Utah has been tracking you via your cell phone since at least 2016 as Defending Utah reported here. Vickie Valera from the governors office of economic development testified before the state legislature,
“You can call this creepy, but I call it creative and complex, but we can keep track of everything you do as a consumer. And we are keeping track.”
With the state not being forthright in its tracking of the people, it’s essential we understand what is gong on and take appropriate action with our mobile devices as well as reaching out to our legislators demanding they no longer allow this violation of the 4th amendment of the US constitution and Article 1 sec 14 of the Utah constitution to continue.
2 Responses
Ben,
Thank you for what you are doing.
On HB16, I emailed my state representative, Todd Weiler, from woods cross and all him to vote against this bill in the senate. He emailed me back and supports the bill. I will be organizing some of the ones in my neighborhood to vote him from office when he comes up.
My question to you is, is Todd misinformed or is his intentions more sinister? Have you done any research in him?
It is our belief that it is more sinister than misinformed. Check out these video’s for more information
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL_Yhkkjwe8
https://www.youtube.com/c/DefendingutahOrg/search?query=buckshot