Pentagon Is Surveilling Americans Without a Warrant, U.S. Senator Says
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Photo: STAFF/AFP
The Pentagon recently signalled to a U.S. senator that it could not publicly reveal if or how it was buying access to Americans’ car, phone, and online metadata, only that,
whatever it was doing, it was not violating the 4th amendment and also definitely didn’t need a warrant to do it.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) has been trying to get to the bottom of how and why the Department of Defence procures data through the private sector. Wyden became interested in the issue after multiple media reports showed that agencies like the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Special Forces, and, comfortingly, an agency in charge of drone strikes, have all been turning to the private sector to purchase data from ordinary apps. In January, the Defence Intelligence Agency admitted to buying access to the location data of phones based in the U.S.
FBI search vehicle
4th Amendment: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
New Legislation Prevents End-Run of Courts by Government Agencies Buying Americans’ Data; Reflects Supreme Court Rulings that Digital is Different; Reps. Nadler and Lofgren to Introduce House Companion
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators
Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., and 18 other senators, today introduced a bill to put a stop to shady data brokers buying and selling Americans’ Constitutional rights.
Wed, 04/21/2021 - 1:56pm tim
New Legislation Prevents End-Run of Courts by Government Agencies Buying Americans’ Data; Reflects Supreme Court Rulings that Digital is Different; Reps. Nadler and Lofgren to Introduce House Companion
Vermont Business Magazine US Senators Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, Ron Wyden, D-Ore, and Rand Paul, R-Ky, and 17 other senators, today introduced a bill to put a stop to shady data brokers buying and selling Americans’ Constitutional rights.
The Fourth Amendment is Not for Sale Act closes the legal loophole that allows data brokers to sell Americans’ personal information to law enforcement and intelligence agencies without any court oversight – in contrast to the strict rules for phone companies, social media sites and other businesses that have direct relationships with consumers.