A '''roving wiretap''' is a warrant for a [[wiretap]] placed on a specific person rather than a "hardwire" tap on a specific phone. The term "wiretap" itself is obsolete and outdated, as the specific copper telephone lines have not themselves been "tapped" since the 1970s. So-called "wiretaps" have been done through switches and electronic radio intercepts for nearly 30s years. Nonetheless, the language used in legislation and court rulings has not kept pace with technological change, and leaving much room for confusion and poltical political demagoguery.
Wiretaps authorized on persons rather than the communications hardware are very useful for [[law enforcement]] when a suspect has easy access to various [[cell phone]]s, [[computer]]s, [[pay phone]]s, and private land lines. Before roving wiretaps, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] would need to get a separate FISC ([[Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court]]) warrant for each method of communication used by a terrorist. With roving wiretaps, the FBI only needs to get one warrant, and tap whatever line the suspect happens to be using at the time.<ref name="206derosa">DeRosa, Mary. “Section 206: Roving Surveillance Authority Under FISA: A Summary” (American Bar Association, 2005).</ref>