Supreme Court Explains Why Electronic Data Is Private
Chatrie v. United States provided a clear recognition that electronic data is constitutionally protected private information.
Torture Effectiveness And Values
By Cliff Montgomery – June 15th, 2015 The Congressional Research Service (CRS) prepares top-notch reports on major political issues for U.S. Congressional members and committees. In February, CRS released a…
UN Human Rights Report On Encryption And Privacy
By Cliff Montgomery – May 31st, 2015“Encryption and anonymity enable individuals to exercise their rights to freedom of opinion and expression in the digital age and, as such, deserve strong…
Senate Fails To Pass NSA Phone Spying Extension
By Cliff Montgomery – May 28th, 2015Last weekend, the Senate defeated every legislative attempt to extend a controversial section of the so-called ‘Patriot Act’, which federal officials offer as a…
NSA Bulk Data Collection Declared Illegal
By Cliff Montgomery – May 12th, 2015Now it’s official. Last week, a U.S. appeals court ruled that the National Security Agency’s massive collection of telephone records is illegal. “A provision…
Cyber Security Laws Business And Government
By Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 30th, 2015Many cyber-analysts believe there is a “need for enhanced and timely exchange of cyber-threat intelligence, both within the private sector and between the private…
Congress Fails To Reign In UNconstitutional Spying Activity
By Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 23rd, 2015Congress has failed to curb U.S. intelligence agencies’ use of National Security Letters (NSLs) – documents which in essence are administrative subpoenas created without…
Possible Changes To FOIA
By Cliff Montgomery – Mar. 31st, 2015Boththe Senate and the House of Representatives are planning a number ofchanges to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), an immensely importantlaw which allows…
Internet Comments Phone Use Prompted Spying
By Cliff Montgomery – Mar. 29th, 2015In December 2014, the Virginia Fusion Center (VFC) issued a bulletin warning law enforcement and other authorities that “emergency management vehicles operating near protest…
Mass Surveillance And Civil Rights
By Cliff Montgomery – Feb. 26th, 2015Even though “targeted lawful interception [of information about suspected individuals] constitutes a necessary and legitimate instrument of intelligence and law enforcement agencies, mass surveillance…
Fusion Center Calls For Greater Police Secrecy
By Cliff Montgomery – Jan. 19th, 2015An intelligence fusion center in Colorado has quietly issued a bulletin intended “to help law enforcement officers and military personnel to minimize their social…
Human Rights Watch Slams CIA On Torture
By Cliff Montgomery – Dec. 24th, 2014Numerous people and organizations have commented on the recent release of a now-infamous summary to a Senate Report on CIA torture techniques. Perhaps none…
No Fly List Lacks Due Process
By Cliff Montgomery – Oct. 22nd, 2014The U.S. government still has not provided individuals wrongly placed on America’s ‘No Fly’ list a clear legal means by which they may remove…
NSA Spying Federal Appeals Court
By Cliff Montgomery – Sept. 11th, 2014Last week, the National Security Agency’s (NSA) massive phone data collection program began to receive its first test in a federal appeals court. It…
Congress Looking To Change Fisc FISA Court
By Cliff Montgomery – Aug. 27th, 2014Congress now is considering several changes to the Executive Branch’s surveillance powers, thanks to the revelations of whistle-blowers like Edward Snowden.Much of the controversy…
Senate Demands Reports On NSA Bulk Collection
By Cliff Montgomery – Aug. 20th, 2014The National Security Agency (NSA) must prepare unclassified studies on “all NSA bulk collection activities,” declared the Senate Appropriations Committee in its Defense Department…
Feds May Medical Personnel May Act As Spies
By Cliff Montgomery – Aug. 8th, 2014“Emergency Medical Treatment Presents [an] Opportunity for Discovery of Violent Extremist Activities,” declares a federal document prepared for fire, rescue and Emergency Medical Services…
Presidential Electronic Records
By Cliff Montgomery – July 9th, 2014The chief law governing the preservation of White House records may not properly ensure the maintenance of media associated with “new and sometimes ephemeral…
Foreign Hackers Targeting Us Government Networks
By Cliff Montgomery – July 2nd, 2014U.S. officials have learned that foreign Internet hackers are using well-known social network sites to successfully target “federal, state and local government and private…
FBI Data System Holds Over 200 Million Records
By Cliff Montgomery – May 28th, 2014The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) runs a national data system which earlier this year contained around 200 million records on approximately two billion…
Cisco Boss Tells Obama To Rein In NSA
By Cliff Montgomery – May 19th, 2014John Chambers, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cisco Systems Inc., has had enough of the National Security Agency’s blatant spying activities, according to…
Nuclear Weapon Docs Missing
By Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 23rd, 2014Classified documents which detail the assembly of nuclear weapons and weapons components have not been correctly maintained by weapons laboratories overseen by the National…
Guantanamo FBI Spying Claims
By Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 16th, 2014The judge who presides over the legal process concerning five 9/11 terrorist suspects adjourned preliminary hearings yesterday, after discovering that federal law enforcement agencies…
Snowden Says NSA Spied On Rights Groups
By Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 8, 2014 Edward Snowden still has stories to tell. Today the former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor had an interesting talk with the Council of…