FISA Reform
It's Never Too Late to Think about NSA's CDR Collection Program
Susan Landau Mon, Jun 22, 2020, 3:49 PM
My new paper examines three critical issues in the NSA’s collection of Call Detail Records.
Latest in usa freedom act
Surveillance
Is Section 215 No Longer Worth the Effort?
Susan Landau Mon, Mar 11, 2019, 12:45 PM
Last week, reports surfaced from the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal that the NSA may be shutting down the Section 215 program accessing domestic call detail records (CDRs).
surveillance
The NSA and the USA Freedom Act
David Kris Mon, Jul 2, 2018, 4:32 PM
The National Security Agency has announced a startling failure in the implementation of the USA Freedom Act of 2015. According to a public statement released by NSA on June 28, the call detail records that NSA has been receiving from telephone companies under the Act are infected with errors, NSA cannot isolate and correct those errors, and so it has decided to purge from its data repositories all of the CDRs ever received under the Act.
Surveillance
The USA FREEDOM Act Turns Two
Caroline Lynch, Lara Flint Fri, Jun 2, 2017, 10:00 AM
Today marks two years since enactment of the bipartisan USA FREEDOM Act (USAF), the first major government surveillance reform legislation in decades, and a lot has happened in the law's short life. Most notably, the world did not come to an end with the end of the NSA's bulk collection of Americans’ phone records.
Bulk Metadata Collection
What Is the "Right" Number of Call Detail Records for 42 Targets under FISA's Business Records Authority?
Robert Chesney Wed, May 3, 2017, 5:45 PM
ODNI's transparency report contains loads of interesting information (see, e.g., Adam's post here on FBI queries of the fruits of 702 collection).
FISA: 215 Collection
DOJ OIG Report on Use of Section 215
Quinta Jurecic Thu, Sep 29, 2016, 2:49 PM
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of Justice has released an unclassified version of a report on the FBI's use of Section 215 from 2012-2014. The classified version of the report was provided to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, House Committee on the Judiciary, and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in June 2016 as required under the USA FREEDOM Act, along with select members of Congressional oversight committees.
FISA
ODNI Releases Three FISC Opinions
Cody M. Poplin Wed, Apr 20, 2016, 1:25 PM
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence released three redacted Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court opinions (FISC) yesterday, respectively on a pen register and trap-and-trace case, Section 702 certifications, and the Government's first application for orders requiring the production of call records under the USA FREEDOM Act.
Surveillance
NSA Releases USA Freedom Act Transparency Report
Cody M. Poplin Fri, Jan 15, 2016, 12:30 PM
The National Security Agency has released a new report on the implementation of the USA Freedom Act, outlining the specific procedures adopted by the Attorney General and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that are designed to protect privacy rights.
The Cyberlaw Podcast
Steptoe Cyberlaw Podcast, Episode #96: An Interview with Senator Tom Cotton
Stewart Baker Wed, Jan 13, 2016, 2:15 PM
How do you graduate as a conservative with two Harvard degrees? We learn this and much more from Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), our guest for episode 96 . We dive deep with the Senator on the 215 metadata program and its USA FREEDOM Act replacement. We ask what the future holds for the 702 program, one of the most important counterterrorism programs and just entering yet another round of jockeying over renewal; Sen. Cotton has already come out in favor of making the program permanent. To round things out, Sen.
FISA: 215 Collection
New National Security Tool Activated At Challenging Time
Glenn Gerstell Thu, Jan 7, 2016, 7:38 AM
Late last year, a judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court gave the green light to the National Security Agency to start using a new tool to help the government protect against international terrorism while balancing the legitimate need to protect privacy and civil liberties. The USA FREEDOM Act, passed by Congress last June, ended the government’s ability to collect information about Americans’ phone calls in bulk under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act, and replaced it with a new arrangement – initiated with court approval on Nov.