Think Twice Before Posting Pictures of Your Firearms on Social Media

[Swordsmyth]

It's no secret that technology plays an important role in our lives. Almost every single aspect of our life is ruled by technology, from smart phones to computers and the internet. That's why it's not surprising to know that Google and Facebook are keeping tabs on gun owners' firearms.
According to The Firearms Blog (TFB), the two tech giants are scanning users' pictures to look for serial numbers. They're then creating an index of every person's firearms based on the image scans. If you've posted a picture of your firearm on a social networking site and didn't smear out the serial number, chances are it's indexed on Google images. Simply type in the serial number in quotes and search images. What comes up?
The guys at TFB went through their image library and found images of various firearms and silencers where the serial number is clearly visible. They then typed it into Google and viola! Every image from their website showed up in the image results.
Although it's unlikely for a random person to have the serial number on your firearms, it is absolutely dangerous for social media giants to have this information. Facebook and Instagram are both owned by the same company. Same with YouTube and Google. When these platforms data mine this information, this creates an extremely dangerous situation.

More at: https://townhall.com/tipsheet/bethba...media-n2555263

[Anti Globalist]

Even if I did own a firearm I'd never post it online. I much prefer the element of surprise.

[CoastieInColorado]

Fun fact I suddenly remembered: When I was in the USCG as a Boarding Officer, I remember there being a directive that we record the serial numbers of any firearms we found on board a vessel. I do remember there being a place to enter the information into "the system"...

I never personally did it, and I don't recall ever seeing someone do it on any boarding I was on or in charge of. I'll try to contact some I still know that are in and ask them if that's still in the manual.

Procedure was that we disarm you and place the weapon on our boat while we conducted the boarding of yours. Again, I never did that $#@! if they said they were armed, just asked where it was and said something like "well please don't kill me" to the captain, checked life jackets and fire extinguishers, and was on my way. I was a good boi.

So pro tip-just don't tell them you have any weapons, they're not looking anyway. The USCG is scared to death of lawsuits and hold the 4th amendment with a little more regard for that reason alone.

I can say for certain that I could've searched 100x's the amount of people just saying to me to "go ahead and search" than I ever could've articulated probable cause for. I can only recall once where I actually searched a vessel under probable cause, and never did even once with consent because I knew they were just idiots who didn't know their rights.

[Pauls' Revere]

[Insert pic of Howitzer here]

[Swordsmyth]

Fun fact I suddenly remembered: When I was in the USCG as a Boarding Officer, I remember there being a directive that we record the serial numbers of any firearms we found on board a vessel. I do remember there being a place to enter the information into "the system"...

I never personally did it, and I don't recall ever seeing someone do it on any boarding I was on or in charge of. I'll try to contact some I still know that are in and ask them if that's still in the manual.

Procedure was that we disarm you and place the weapon on our boat while we conducted the boarding of yours. Again, I never did that $#@! if they said they were armed, just asked where it was and said something like "well please don't kill me" to the captain, checked life jackets and fire extinguishers, and was on my way. I was a good boi.

So pro tip-just don't tell them you have any weapons, they're not looking anyway. The USCG is scared to death of lawsuits and hold the 4th amendment with a little more regard for that reason alone.

I can say for certain that I could've searched 100x's the amount of people just saying to me to "go ahead and search" than I ever could've articulated probable cause for. I can only recall once where I actually searched a vessel under probable cause, and never did even once with consent because I knew they were just idiots who didn't know their rights.

The Fourth Amendment Rights vs. Boarding Power of the United States Coast Guard

While the Fourth Amendment may protect the citizen, law abiding or not, from the threat of an “unwarranted” search, that protection ceases once the citizen is on a vessel. The Coast Guard has sweeping authority to board any vessel (subject to the jurisdiction of the United States) at any time, any place. It does not require a warrant. It does not require probable cause. Boardings need not be based on a suspicion that a violation already exists aboard the vessel. Their purpose is to prevent violations and the courts have upheld this authority. Also, the Coast Guard has full legal law enforcement power on any land under the control of the United States, as needed to complete any mission. 14 USC 89 has its roots in the Revenue Service Act of 1790 which provided “all collectors, naval officers, surveyors, inspectors and the officers of the revenue cutters . . . to go on board ships in any part of the United States . . . for the purposes of demanding manifests . . . examining and searching the said ships, and the officers shall have free access to the cabin and every other part of the vessel . . .” This statute was passed by the first Congress, the same Congress that enacted the Bill of Rights, including the Fourth Amendment with its guarantees for citizens to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures. By enacting the Revenue Service Act, the first Congress showed unequivocally that the Coast Guard’s significant law enforcement authorities to board and search a U.S. flag vessel anywhere in the world, as well as vessels intending to call on U.S. ports, were consistent with the Fourth Amendment.U.S. Courts over the last 200 years have consistently validated the right of the Coast Guard to board and inspect vessels, probable cause or not.Plainly stated, when it comes to Coast Guard boarding, you don’t have any rights. As stated by Capt. Rasicott and CDR Cunningham in their article found in Proceedings, Summer 2009; “There are two main ways to board a vessel – either with permission, or without.”

More at: https://mblb.com/admiralty-maritime/...s-coast-guard/

[CoastieInColorado]

The Fourth Amendment Rights vs. Boarding Power of the United States Coast Guard


While the Fourth Amendment may protect the citizen, law abiding or not, from the threat of an “unwarranted” search, that protection ceases once the citizen is on a vessel. The Coast Guard has sweeping authority to board any vessel (subject to the jurisdiction of the United States) at any time, any place. It does not require a warrant. It does not require probable cause. Boardings need not be based on a suspicion that a violation already exists aboard the vessel. Their purpose is to prevent violations and the courts have upheld this authority. Also, the Coast Guard has full legal law enforcement power on any land under the control of the United States, as needed to complete any mission. 14 USC 89 has its roots in the Revenue Service Act of 1790 which provided “all collectors, naval officers, surveyors, inspectors and the officers of the revenue cutters . . . to go on board ships in any part of the United States . . . for the purposes of demanding manifests . . . examining and searching the said ships, and the officers shall have free access to the cabin and every other part of the vessel . . .” This statute was passed by the first Congress, the same Congress that enacted the Bill of Rights, including the Fourth Amendment with its guarantees for citizens to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures. By enacting the Revenue Service Act, the first Congress showed unequivocally that the Coast Guard’s significant law enforcement authorities to board and search a U.S. flag vessel anywhere in the world, as well as vessels intending to call on U.S. ports, were consistent with the Fourth Amendment.U.S. Courts over the last 200 years have consistently validated the right of the Coast Guard to board and inspect vessels, probable cause or not.Plainly stated, when it comes to Coast Guard boarding, you don’t have any rights. As stated by Capt. Rasicott and CDR Cunningham in their article found in Proceedings, Summer 2009; “There are two main ways to board a vessel – either with permission, or without.”

More at: https://mblb.com/admiralty-maritime/...s-coast-guard/

This is not complete information and I could've swore the rest of that sentence reads "that the crew has common access to, defined as a "common space""...in other words, the galley,head, engine room, passageways, etc, this was NOT interpreted to mean USCG Boarding Officers can search wherever they want, they can only board the vessel at anytime and conduct an inspection(vessel registration, life jackets for every one on board, fire extinguisher and a radio), which is not a search(this is established case law)..Commercial vessels are a little more extensive, however, the 4th and 5th amendments always still apply. @Anti Federalist

We still had to develop reasonable suspicion and then probable cause a crime was being committed to conduct a search of you or your vessel...

Say during my ISI(initial safety inspection), I needed to check a bulkhead valve that happened to be in your stateroom-I can legally go in there and check the valve, HOWEVER, I cannot search your room just because the valve is located in there, make sense?

That article says "board and search", it should read "board and inspect"...I'm 100% positive on this, else they wouldn't have spent so much time training us on the 4th and 5th, and how to trick you into giving consent...

Plain view discovery still applies, however, just like any LE agent(meaning I see a bag of coke or what I believe to be coke on your dresser, then no warrant is needed as probable cause has been met...

[Swordsmyth]

This is not complete information and I could've swore the rest of that sentence reads "that crew has common access to"...in other words, the galley,head, engine room, etc, this was NOT interpreted to mean USCG Boarding Officers can search wherever they want, they can only board the vessel at anytime and conduct an inspection(vessel registration, life jackets for every one on board, fire extinguisher and a radio), which is not a search(this is established case law)..

We still had to develop reasonable suspicion and then probable cause a crime was being committed to conduct a search of you or your vessel...

Say during my ISI(initial safety inspection), I needed to check a bulkhead valve that happened to be in your stateroom-I can legally go in there and check the valve, HOWEVER, I cannot search your room just because the valve is located in there, make sense?

That article says "board and search", it should read "board and inspect"...I'm 100% positive on this, else they wouldn't have spent so much time training us on the 4th and 5th, and how to trick you into giving consent...

Plain view discovery still applies, however, just like any LE agent(meaning I see a bag of coke or what I believe to be coke on your dresser, then no warrant is needed as probable cause has been met...

Thanks for the clarification.

[CoastieInColorado]

Thanks for the clarification.

Anytime. Commercial vessels are a little more involved, but again, the 4th and 5th still applies. Even foreign flagged vessels/crew I would treat as US citizens, and I don't believe I had to, but I'm not sure on that as I wasn't on very many of those type of boardings (big commercial vessels)anyway, and when I was it was in a tactical "hut hut hut" type of situation that had already escalated past those formalities lol.

[CCTelander]

Here's a thought: If you own firearms, never post pictures of them, ever.

[bv3]

But, but, but if no one sees them then I don't have them. This is America: Everything must be displayed.