iPhones and iPads are rapidly becoming a primary computing device for many users. As such, they're increasingly subject to search and seizure by legal authorities, according to GigaOM.

The first time a search warrant was issued for an iPhone was shortly after the device debuted in 2007. Since then the numbers have increased steadily. According to the US Public Access to Court Electronic Records (or PACER), there have been 50 cases in which "iPhone" was listed. Additionally, this year's warrants have already outnumbered those issued in 2009.

Authorities seized an iPad for the first time last year.

This trend illustrates how nabbing a thief's mobile device can be just as helpful to investigators as acquiring a hard drive, if not more so. As I've said before, the iPhone is a computer in my pocket that just happens to make phone calls.