The words and their meaning are simple and straightforward, and should be vigorously defended by all Americans. I’m referring to the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

So how do state police in Michigan justify using a hacking device to download all of the data from cell phones or smart phones of drivers they pull over for even minor traffic offenses like speeding, illegal lane change or having a taillight out? The answer is they can’t; yet they’re doing it.

According to the manufacturer of the device used by Michigan law enforcement, it will get around passwords and “completely extract existing, hidden and deleted phone data, including call history, text messages, contacts, images and geotags.“

I know a few of you are going to say that if a person has nothing to hide, then it shouldn’t matter if police download all the data from the phones of innocent people. In fact I bet some will trot out that tired old cliché that if it helps police catch just one criminal then it will be worth it. Well, I fervently disagree.

Don’t get me wrong; I strongly support our law enforcement personnel, many of whom put their lives at risk on our behalf day after day. And yes, I realize how difficult it can be for them to do their jobs due to the constitutional protections we enjoy. However, maintaining the sanctity of our U.S. Constitution and its safeguards of our personal liberty is paramount to any and all other concerns.

Like me, I doubt that any of you want to live in a police state where your every move is monitored and where mail, phone calls and electronic communications are intercepted. Yet we are quickly headed that way, thanks largely to the technological revolution unfolding before our eyes.

Until the implementation of the Social Security system in the 1930s, it was easy to be anonymous. If a person wanted to leave town and establish a new life in another city or state, there was little to stop him. Today that would be almost impossible.

With just a few mouse clicks, even a private individual can uncover massive amounts of information about someone else. Private phone numbers, marriage records, divorce records, bankruptcy records, criminal records, business holdings and details about the person’s home are just some of what is out there floating in cyberspace. Just for fun, go to the website Spokeo.com and see what public information they have for you. Or spend a few dollars at Intelius.com and really dig into your public data.

We Americans are by and large very trusting people. When law enforcement monitors our electronic communications, bank transactions, etc., we want to believe there are no ulterior motives. When a business tells us they protect our privacy, most folks have no concerns. Yet everyday cyber criminals hack into the data of businesses and government agencies, grabbing email lists, personal information and financial data that can be used to steal identities.

Perhaps you spotted a news story a few days ago that highlighted how innocent people were having their front doors kicked in, their computers seized and were being placed under arrest for suspicion of downloading child porn, yet were completely innocent. It seems in every instance the person had a wireless Internet router in their home that was not password protected. A neighbor then used that unprotected wireless signal to download child porn to his or her own computer. The police tracked the IP address back to the innocent party not knowing someone nearby was signal stealing.

Just this week I read an article revealing how law enforcement was using Facebook to track down and arrest fugitives. On the surface that sounds good. However, they are also downloading personal information, photos, friend lists and other data to build dossiers on innocent Facebook users just to have on file for future use.

Also, numerous news stories were floating the past week about how Android smart phones and Apple iPhones keep a detailed record of everywhere you travel and store that data permanently. While Apple and Google vigorously deny they will ever use that information, you are not safe. For instance, if you ever find yourself in a contested divorce case, one of the first things a good attorney will do is subpoena your cell phone records. Do you really want to sit there in the courtroom as all of your travels, your text messages and the record of all your phone calls are laid bare for all to see?

Want more? It was recently announced that Google was unveiling a smart phone app that would allow private citizens to snap a picture of a complete stranger anywhere and the app would use facial recognition matching technology to compare that photo against a worldwide database of photos to tell you who the person is.

Imagine you are on the beach enjoying a vacation and some stranger casually snaps a picture of you, runs the facial recognition app and discovers who you are. He uses one of the public database sites to find out where you live, and then calls some of his criminal buddies to let them know your family is on vacation and the house is unoccupied. I hope you invested in deadbolts and a good alarm system. This is a good time to remind you to not post vacation photos on Facebook until you have returned home from your trip.

Like many of you, I love technology. However, the world is full of people who want to use that technology to steal from us, control us or worse. Our lives are open books and we desperately need some additional safeguards to protect us from those who would cause us harm. Until that happens, use some common sense and don’t make it easy for the bad guys.

Follow me on Twitter @chuckshiflett and also check out my statewide columns at: The Backroom Report.