FBI Abused Law, Own Rules More Than 1,000 Times While Spying On America

The Bush Administration usually could have obtained data without abuses, according to a March report.FBI Abused Law, Own Rules More Than 1,000 Times While Spying On AmericaBy Cliff Montgomery – June 15th, 2007An new internal FBI review has revealed that the Bureau apparently abused the law or its own rules more than 1,000 times while spying on domestic emails, phone calls, and financial transactions in the last five years–far more than was discovered in a March Justice Department (DOJ) audit that ignited earnest bipartisan congressional outrage.The more recent report documents a mere 10 percent of the FBI’s so-called ‘national security investigations’ since 2002; therefore the Bureau abuses probably number in the several thousand, FBI officials admitted to the Washington Post on Thursday.The earlier report discovered only 26 possible violations resulting from the Bureau’s use of National Security Letters (NSLs) from 2003 through 2005, due to a much smaller sampling.Below we quote from the March Senate Judiciary Committee testimony of DOJ Inspector General Glenn Fine, on the results of that earlier internal audit of FBI privacy violations. These disturbing quotes are far more timely now.“Our review examined the FBI’s use of National Security Letters, NSLs, from 2003 through 2005. As required by the Act, the OIG [Office of Inspector General] will conduct another review on the FBI’s use of NSLs in 2006, which we must issue by the end of this year.”Our report describes widespread and serious misuse of the FBI’s National Security Letter authorities. In many instances, the FBI’s misuse violated NSL statutes, Attorney General guidelines, or the FBI’s own internal policies. We also found that the FBI did not provide adequate guidance, adequate controls, or adequate training on the use of these sensitive authorities. However, I believe it is also important to provide context for these findings.”First, we recognize the significant challenges the FBI faced during this period covered by our review. After the September 11th terrorist attacks, the FBI implemented major organizational changes while responding to continuing terrorist threats and conducting many counterterrorism investigations, both internationally and domestically.”Second, it is also important to recognize that in most, but not all, of the cases we examined, the FBI was seeking information that it could have obtained properly through the National Security Letters if it had followed applicable statutes, guidelines, and internal policies. [Italics added.]”Third, although we could not rule it out, we did not find that FBI employees sought to intentionally misuse NSLs or sought information that they knew they were not entitled to obtain. Instead, I believe the misuses and the problems we found generally were the product of mistakes, confusion, sloppiness, lack of training, lack of adequate guidance, and a lack of adequate oversight.”But I do not believe that any of my observations excuse the FBI’s misuse of National Security Letters. When the PATRIOT Act enabled the FBI to obtain sensitive information through the NSLs on a much larger scale,  the FBI should have established sufficient controls and oversight to ensure the proper use of these authorities. The FBI did not do so. The FBI’s failures, in my view, were serious and unacceptable.”I would now like to highlight our review’s main findings.”Our review found that after enactment of the PATRIOT Act, the FBI’s use of National Security Letters increased dramatically.  In 2000, the last full year prior to passage of the Act, the FBI issued approximately 8,500 NSL requests. After the PATRIOT Act, the number of NSLs requests increased to approximately 39,000 in 2003, approximately 56,000 in 2004, and approximately 47,000 in 2005. In total, during the 3-year period the FBI issued more than 143,000 NSL requests.”However, we believe that these numbers, which are based on information from the FBI’s database, significantly understate the total number of NSL requests. During our file reviews in four FBI field offices, we found additional NSL requests in the files that were not contained in the FBI database. In addition, many NSL requests were not included in the Department’s reports to Congress.  “In one of the most troubling findings, we determined that the FBI improperly obtained telephone toll billing records and subscriber information from [a number of] telephone companies pursuant to over 700 so-called exigent letters. These letters generally were signed by personnel in the Communications Analysis Unit and FBI headquarters.”The exigent letters were based on a form letter used by the FBI’s New York Field Division in the criminal investigations related to the September 11th attacks.”Our review found that the FBI sometimes used these exigent letters in non-emergencycircumstances.”In addition, the FBI failed to ensure that there were authorized investigations to which these requests could be tied.”The exigent letters also inaccurately represented that the FBI had already requested subpoenas for the information when it had not.”Like what you’re reading so far? Then why not order a full year (52 issues) of thee-newsletter for only $15? A major article covering an story not being told in the Corporate Press will be delivered to your email every Monday morning for a full year, for less than 30 cents an issue. Order Now!