NSA Bill Performs a Patriot Act
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Under the guise of reining in the Bush administration's warrantless eavesdropping program, the Senate Judiciary Committee approves a bill that would dramatically expand the government's domestic surveillance capabilities, and usher in a new age of rampant monitoring. By Ryan Singel.
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Bill grants legal immunity to telecommunications companies that aided government wiretapping.
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(InfoWorld) - An antispyware bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives this week faces opposition from several groups with one side saying it's too strong and the other saying it's too weak. The Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act (SPY ACT), which passed the House Wednesday by a vote of 368 to 48, would prohibit taking control of computers to send unsolicited material to others, diverting the Web browser, modifying a computer's settings and keystroke logging. The bill would make it illegal to collect personal information without permission and it allows fines of up to $3 million for some violations. But several business groups, led by the DMA (Direct Marketing Association), sent a letter to House leaders this week raising objections that the bill too broadly defines "computer software" and "information collection programs," and it could make it illegal for e-commerce sites to recommend products based on browsing or buying history, engage in targeted advertising, or to place cookies on a Web site user's computer "The scope and impact of [the bill] on legitimate businesses goes far beyond regulating spyware and cuts to the heart of the information economy," said the letter, signed by 31 trade groups and companies. The bill could "limit the seamless Internet experience that is responsible for the widespread adoption of the Internet by consumers," the letter said. Representatives of the SPY ACT's two main sponsors, Representative Ed Towns, a New York Democrat, and Representative Mary Bono, a California Republican, weren't immediately available for comment. The SPY ACT is the second piece of antispyware legislation passed by the House this year. The Internet Spyware Prevention Act (I-SPY),Â which passed the House in May, hasn't prompted major objections. I-SPY would create penalties of up to five years in prison for some spyware-like behavior. Versions of both bills passed the House in May 2005, but failed to make it through the Senate. By requiring Web sites to get permission every time they track a users' history, the SPY ACT could make Web surfing an unwieldy series of pop-ups asking for permission, said Steve Berry, the DMA's executive vice president for government affairs. By trying to define bad uses of technology, the bill becomes overly broad, he said. "Our thought is maybe you should look at the intent rather than trying to regulate the technology," Berry said. Among the groups signing the letter in opposition to the SPY ACT were the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Information Technology Association of America, NetCoalition, Charles Schwab & Co, and the Internet Alliance. Meanwhile, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has raised different objections to the SPY ACT. The bill would preempt about 10 state laws that have been passed, many of them stronger than the SPY ACT, said Fred von Lohmann, senior intellectual property lawyer for the EFF. In addition, the bill would take away the ability of private citizens to sue spyware creators, von Lohmann said. The bill "would actually make things worse, insulating adware vendors from more stringent state laws and private lawsuits," von Lohmann wrote on the EFF blog in April. The bill concentrates spyware enforcement in the hands of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and state attorney generals, instead of allowing private lawsuits as well, he said. "This is a terrible move," von Lohmann wrote. "If Congress is serious about enacting tough anti-spyware laws, it should create incentives that would encourage private citizens to pursue the bad guys." Bono, one of the bill's sponsors, said in a statement this week that the preemption of state laws is the right approach. "Because of the Internet's role in interstate commerce, the need for federal spyware legislation is clear, depending on a patchwork of state laws is simply unworkable," she said. "The passage of the SPY ACT moves the American people one step closer to reclaiming control of their computers in their home and at their business."
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Law enforcement and anti-terrorism provisions are included in the intelligence legislation passed by Congress. The measure:
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VICTORIA (CP) - The provincial government passed a bill Tuesday aimed at protecting British Columbia residents from the long arm of the USA Patriot Act.
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The feds accidentally give a D.C. attorney a classified document showing that the NSA intercepted his phone calls without a warrant. When they ask for it back, they get a $2 million lawsuit along with it. By Ryan Singel.
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(InfoWorld) - The U.S. Congress should proceed cautiously while considering bills to authorize a U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance program because of the potential impact on the technology industry, a tech trade group said Friday. A day after legislation to authorize the controversial NSA program stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) sent a letter to the committee raising concerns about surveillance programs that "undermine" government checks and balances in the U.S. Constitution. A massive surveillance program will hurt users' confidence in the privacy of communications networks and will put burdensome requirements on tech and telecom vendors, said Ed Black, president and chief executive officer of CCIA. The trade group's members include Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. "This is a very delicate area, and we have to be careful of what we do," Black said. "What the [Bush] administration has been pushing is a system without real limits, without real checks." U.S. President George Bush's administration has used the NSA program to monitor electronic communications of U.S. residents, without seeking court-issued wiretap orders. Bush, in a speech on Thursday, defended the program and said it helps keep U.S. residents safe. Although Bush administration officials continue to say the program is legal, Bush called on Congress to authorize the program as a way to head off multiple lawsuits challenging it. "The terrorists who want to harm America can now buy disposable cell phones, and open anonymous e-mail addresses," Bush said during a speech in Atlanta, Georgia. "Our laws need to change to take these changes into account." In August, a federal judge in Michigan declared the NSA program illegal, and in July, a federal judge in California, denied motions by the U.S. government and AT&T Inc. to stop a lawsuit over the carrier's alleged participation in the NSA program. On Thursday, a federal judge in Oregon rejected a motion by the U.S. government to stop a lawsuit there alleging the NSA program is illegal. An Islamic organization brought the lawsuit against Bush and directors of the NSA and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Also on Thursday, two bills to authorize the NSA program stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee when Democrats offered a series of amendments. Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, complained that Democrats were obstructing the legislation. Specter may try to bring the legislation up for a vote in the Judiciary Committee later this month. Black urged the committee to fully consider the economic effects of a large surveillance program. Telecom carriers and Internet service providers may have to store records of all communications for several months if the legislation is approved, he said. "We're running headlong into a major alteration of the way communications in this country are monitored without a thorough consideration of all the factors in play," Black said.
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Part of the Patriot Act, a central  plank of the Bush Administration's war on terror, was ruled  unconstitutional by a federal judge on Wednesday.
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Snooping and secrecy can help the government catch terrorists. But they also can also let government employees sniff around your private life without your even knowing about it.
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The U.S. Congress has wrapped up its work for the year by passing a bill that would make it illegal to obtain a person's phone records without permission.
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The lower house of Zimbabwe&#39;s parliament  passed a bill on Wednesday allowing the government to monitor  phones, mail and the Internet to protect national security.
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The House approved a bill Thursday that would grant legal status to President Bush's warrantless wiretapping program with new restrictions. Republicans called it a test before the election of whether Democrats want to fight or "coddle" terrorists.
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Members of Congress vowed today to conduct investigative hearings -- and consider reining in parts of the Patriot Act -- following revelations of pervasive problems in the FBI's use of national security letters to secretly obtain telephone, e-mail and financial records in terrorism cases.
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(Sept. 30) -- The portion of the controversial Patriot Act that allows for searches of Internet and phone records has been declared unconstitutional.
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The FBI once regularly (and surreptitiously) broke into Americans' homes and offices. Now a Senate bill backed by President Bush seems to offer legal immunity to anyone who helps the FBI, CIA, Homeland Security, or the NSA do just that.
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The FBI wants to compile a massive computer database and analyze it for clues to unmask terrorist sleeper cells. Two congressmen are worried about whether the bureau will protect the privacy of U.S. citizens.
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A US court strikes down parts of the Patriot Act allowing the FBI to secretly access internet records.