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The Internet has opened the doors for so many opportunities
that were not easily available in the past. For example, research is now easier
to do with the Internet available. Instead of going to the library and reading
books for information, the Internet speeds up the process and the user can
search millions of sources with the needed information. However, although the
Internet is widely used all over the world, many people do not feel safe using
the Internet because they feel that their activity online is being tracked by
another person or organization. These people may have a point.
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the US,
with assistance from major telecommunication carriers, including AT&T have
engaged in a massive program of illegal dragnet surveillance of domestic
communications and communications records of millions of ordinary Americans
since at least 2001. (Electronic Frontier Foundation) There have
been several news reports in December 2005 that have revealed that the National
Security Council (NSA) have been tracking several phone calls and Internet
communications from Americans. EFF has also obtained other whistleblower
evidence from former AT&T technician Mark Klein showing that AT&T and
the NSA work together to track email, web-browsing, and other Internet activity
from AT&T customers.
The Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) also grants
many federal agencies to track online activity of American citizens. The
original Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act dates back to 1978; it was
expanded during the Bush administration in 2008, to allow both foreign and
domestic surveillance without a warrant, as long as the intent is to gather
foreign intelligence. (Chappell, 2012) President Obama recently signed
a FISA extension in December 31, 2012, which would allow federal agencies to
track American citizens online activity until 2017.
The EFF is currently fighting in court to stop this activity. EFF is currently representing victims in the Jewel v. NSA case, which was filed in September 2008, and it is seeking to stop the warrantless wiretapping and hold the government officials behind the program accountable. EFF also represented victims in the Hepting v. AT&T case, which was filed for invading a customer's privacy. The case was dismissed by the US Supreme Court. Many amendments have also been passed to limit the activity of FISA but they all failed to become ratified.
The EFF is currently fighting in court to stop this activity. EFF is currently representing victims in the Jewel v. NSA case, which was filed in September 2008, and it is seeking to stop the warrantless wiretapping and hold the government officials behind the program accountable. EFF also represented victims in the Hepting v. AT&T case, which was filed for invading a customer's privacy. The case was dismissed by the US Supreme Court. Many amendments have also been passed to limit the activity of FISA but they all failed to become ratified.
Sources:
There was an interesting article a while back about one of the main social media sites releasing the amount of government request to review user information. The site could list the number of request but on a vague scale of 1-999 inquiries per month. One of the main issues I think people still need to understand is that people are putting a lot of personal information that anyone can see. The government will sometimes get falsely accused of privacy violations for looking at information of a person that anyone could see. Yet, they have been known to look into private conversations such as emails even to the point of using keyword finders to flag potential threats.
ReplyDeleteYou make a very interesting point. Many people are posting onto social media sites, with their 'Privacy' set to 'Public'. So, they must realize that this ultimately means anyone has the right to read their information. If they are concerned about the government reviewing information, the first step is that they must first ensure that their social media sites' security features are set to be seen by 'friends' or 'subscribers'.
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed that the American public is so willing to accept this kind of activity. This is a throwback to former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover's blatant disregard of the U.S. Constitution. If the government wants to read someones mail or listen to their telephone calls, the need a warrant, the same should be true of online communications.
ReplyDelete