A "sneak and peek" warrant is a search warrant that allows law enforcement officers to enter and search a premises without immediately notifying the owner when such notice may have an adverse result (e.g., tipping off a suspect or co-conspirators).[1]

Before passage of the USA PATRIOT Act, which explicitly codified and expanded "delayed-notice" ("sneak and peek") search warrants, these warrants were designed for use in criminal cases and exercised on a limited basis.[2]

The USA PATRIOT Act amended Title 18 to allow federal law enforcement officers to request from the courts a "sneak and peek" search warrant allowing officers to enter and search a premises without immediately notifying the owner when such notice may have an adverse result (e.g., tipping off a suspect or co-conspirators).[3]