Catherine Crump facts for kids

Catherine Crump (born 1978) is an American law professor. She is an expert on civil liberties, especially how new digital technologies affect our privacy and freedom of speech. She works at the UC Berkeley School of Law. There, she helps lead the Samuelson Law, Technology and Public Policy Clinic. She also co-directs the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology.

Professor Crump often shares her knowledge about how digital information is collected. She also talks about the laws that protect our data. In 2023, she even worked as a senior advisor for the White House. She helped with policies related to justice.

Who is Catherine Crump?

Catherine Crump is a lawyer and a professor. She teaches at the University of California, Berkeley. She directs a special clinic there. This clinic gives law students real-world experience. They learn about how technology and law connect. For example, they worked on a project about how California uses electronic tracking devices on young people.

Why is Privacy Important to Her?

Throughout her career, Catherine Crump has strongly supported privacy rights. She believes that everyone has a right to keep their personal information safe. She has spoken out about many issues where technology might threaten privacy.

She has talked about drone aircraft. She believes the government should not just focus on drone safety. They also need to think about privacy. Could drones be used to spy on people or collect private information? This is a big concern for her.

Professor Crump has also criticized the use of cameras that read license plates. These cameras can track where millions of Americans go. They can build huge databases of movements over many months or years. She believes this collects too much information on innocent people.

She argues that Congress should make rules. These rules would stop law enforcement from misusing cell phone and GPS technology. She thinks they should not collect private information on innocent people without a special court order called a warrant.

She also believes that border agents should not check travelers' laptops and cell phones. This should not happen unless they suspect someone of doing something wrong. She thinks the government should only watch people who are suspected of crimes. They should not build huge databases about everyone's movements.

Images for kids

• Catherine Crump Intelligence Squared U.S. Foundation debate 2017.jpg

  Catherine Crump speaking at a debate about privacy.