Subpoenaing cell phone records is a legal process used to gather information from carriers or service providers. It can be done for various reasons, such as discovering evidence in criminal cases, finding witnesses, or gathering intelligence.

While the subpoena process offers numerous advantages to law enforcement and government agencies, it also raises serious privacy concerns.

Carriers must often provide detailed customer information, including call logs and text messages, which can be highly intrusive and potentially violate federal law protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.