A judge has approved the implantation of surveillance software on the cell phones of Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents to ensure that he does not break the conditions of his bail.
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers on April 19 requested an extension of the FTX co-founder’s recently revised bail conditions, alleging difficulties finding necessary surveillance software for his parents’ cellphones.
Initially, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers suggested installing software that would take a photo of the user “every five minutes.”
In a document filed April 21 in a New York district court, the lawyers said that while the surveillance software they used did not have the ability to take a photo of the user every five minutes, it could record touches from all Bankman-Fried parents’ mobile device activities.
The district judge handling the case, Lewis Kaplan, approved the measures on April 24.
The software will also monitor rogue app installation, internet browser history, iMessage, as well as all voice calls and FaceTime sessions.
A technical adviser will review the logs and screenshots “at least three times a week” to ensure that the conditions of Bankman-Fried’s bail are not being breached.
The ruling comes at a time of growing interest in Bankman-Fried’s access to cell phones.
Judge Kaplan noted that Bankman-Fried had a “garden of electronic devices” with internet access at her parents’ house.
In addition, the judge warned that there was “probable cause” to believe that Bankman-Fried was involved in an attempted witness tampering. Bankman-Fried reportedly made contact in late January with FTX’s former general counsel, referred to as “Witness-1” in court records.
On March 28, it was reported that Bankman-Fried’s parents had agreed to limit his access to their devices. Her parents also signed affidavits agreeing not to bring prohibited electronic devices into their home.
On March 4, Judge Kaplan proposed to ban Bankman-Fried from using smartphones, tablets, computers, and any gaming platform or device that allows voice chat and communication.
He was also temporarily banned from using VPNs after prosecutors accused him of using the privacy protection software on two separate occasions: on January 29 and February 12.
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