Section 2.

The right of the people to be secure in their person’s house, papers,

and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature and
for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search warrant or warrant of arrest
shall issue except upon probable cause to be determined personally by the
judge after examination under oath or affirmation of the complainant and the
witnesses he may produce, and the persons or things to be seized.

Meaning of search warrant and warrant of arrest.

1. A search warrant is an order in writing, issued in the name of the People of

the Philippines, signed by a judge and directed to a peace officer,
commanding him to search for certain personal property and bring it
before the court.
2. If the command is to arrest a person designated, to take him into custody in
order that he may be bound to answer for the commission of an offense,
the written order is called warrant of arrest.

Scope of Protection

1. Persons- protection applies to everybody. Corporations are also entitled to

the protection
2. House- extends to garage, warehouse, shop, store, office and even a safety
deposit vault.
3. Papers and effect- they include sealed letters and packages in the mail
which may be opened and examined only pursuance of a valid search
warrant.

Sufficiency of description

1. Place – description of the place to be searched is sufficient if the officer

with a search warrant can reasonable effort, ascertain and identify the
place intended. Thus, it has been held that the description of the building
to be searched as “building no. 123 Rizal Avenue, Manila” is a sufficient
designation of the premises to be searched.
2. Person- description of the person or such as will enable the officer to
identify the accused.
 3. Property- the description of the property is required to be specific only in
so far as the circumstances will ordinarily allow.

Section 3. (1) The Privacy of communication and correspondence shall be

inviolable except upon lawful order of the court, or when public safety or order
requires otherwise as prescribed by law.

(2) Any evidence obtained in violation of this or the preceding section shall be
inadmissible for any proceeding.

Meaning of right of privacy.

The right to privacy is concisely defined as the right to be left alone. It has also
been defined as the right of a person to be free from undesired publicity, or
disclosure and as right to live without unwarranted interference by the public in
matters with which the public is not necessarily concerned.

Basis and purpose of the provision.

1. The right of privacy is considered belonging to that class of rights which

every human being possesses in his natural state and which he does not
lose or surrender by becoming a member a member of organized society.
The right has been equated with to live as one choose under the law free
from interference in the pursuit of one’s choice.
2. By the above constitutional provision, there is an express recognition that
the persons may communicate with each other without the State having a
right to pry into such communication and correspondence.