Surveillance Watchdog Concludes Metadata Program Is Illegal, "Should End"

Posted by timothy on Thursday January 23, 2014 @06:15AM from the are-you-now-or-have-you-ever-been dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Three out of five PCLOB board members are in agreement: The NSA spy programs are illegal.. Unfortunately, these lawyers are not in a position to act or make any changes, only to advise congress and the president. Could this be the start of change to come? 'According to leaked copies of a forthcoming report by the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB), the government's metadata collection program "lacks a viable legal foundation under Section 215, implicates constitutional concerns under the First and Fourth Amendments, raises serious threats to privacy and civil liberties as a policy matter, and has shown only limited value As a result, the board recommends that the government end the program.'" Not surprisingly, the Obama administration disagrees.

2 of 138 comments (clear)

Min score:

Reason:

Sort:

Re:Duh by ackthpt · 2014-01-23 06:33 · Score: 5, Interesting

Surveillance Watchdog Concludes Metadata Program Is Illegal, "Should End"
Any rational person with half a brain would come to the same conclusion.
Sadly, more people are spending the morning texting each other over last night's arrest of a rich kid with poor self discipline.

--

A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Re:Probably won't have much affect by SplawnDarts · 2014-01-23 06:35 · Score: 5, Interesting

While this opinion is in no way binding, it may still be valuable. The courts have not weighed in on the various NSA activities with any finality. One district judge has indicated it's probably constitutional. One has indicated it's not. Public disapproval can still help sway the outcome when this dispute makes its inevitable way to the supreme court.