Slashdot Mirror


US Appeals Court Says NSA Phone Surveillance Is Not Authorized By Congress

New submitter IronOxen writes: A panel of three federal judges for the second circuit overturned an earlier ruling. The court has ruled that the bulk collection of telephone metadata is unlawful, in a landmark decision that clears the way for a full legal challenge against the National Security Agency: "'We hold that the text of section 215 cannot bear the weight the government asks us to assign to it, and that it does not authorize the telephone metadata program,' concluded their judgement." That's not exactly saying that such bulk collection is unconscionable or per se unconstitutional, but it's a major step toward respecting privacy as a default.

15 of 237 comments (clear)

  1. Re:We're so screwed. by Spazmania · · Score: 5, Insightful

    We have indeed tasked loyal people with a job. You misunderstand that job. The job is to keep us as safe as possible within the restrictions on methods that liberty requires.

    --
    Moderating "-1, Disagree" is simple censorship. Have the guts to post your opinion.
  2. Not authorized is worse than unconstional. by gurps_npc · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It means that they personally are at fault, rather than that Congress overstepped it's authority.

    --
    excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
    1. Re:Not authorized is worse than unconstional. by Brett+Buck · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It doesn't mean that - it means that the status of the constitutionality is still open to question. This ruling takes no position on that, just that Congress did not authorize it. Congress could pass a law tomorrow authorizing it, THEN it could be challenged on grounds of constitutionality.

  3. For those who can read... by BrendaEM · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Amendment IV

    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.

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/c/BrendaEM
    1. Re:For those who can read... by JMJimmy · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Which of my "person, house, papers, and effects" is the phone company's information about my phone calls?
      It's information about me, but it belongs to the phone company, and they have it. The government can search through it without any impact to me at all.
      I'm not saying they should be allowed to, but the 4th Amendment is irrelevant here.

      You must interpret the meaning of the time to the technology of today. Communicating over distance when this was written was done by paper handed to a courier. Now that paper is an electronic signal and the courier is an ISP or phone company. Would you consider the government following each and every courier you sent out to see who you were talking to a violation of your privacy in the 1780s? I would

      All that said, if you RTFA or even the summary... "That's not exactly saying that such bulk collection is unconscionable or per se unconstitutional, but it's a major step toward respecting privacy as a default. "

  4. Yeah so? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just because it's illegal or not authorized doesn't mean that they will stop. They'll simply continue and do their best to keep it hush hush

  5. Re:The Real Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    About as fast as Senator Obama's changed when he was elected president.

  6. Re:We're so screwed. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The terrorists did less damage to our way of life than this kind of government spying on its own citizens.

  7. Snowden? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    maybe now we can pardon Snowden?

  8. Re:The Real Question by cdrudge · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Did you drive to work today? I bet you exceeded the speed limit at some point. Or possibly pushed the limits on that yellowish-red light you ran. Have you ever sang a non-public domain song without paying a royalty (including Happy Birthday)? Jaywalked? Failed to register and/or vaccinate your pet? Not changing your address when you move?

    Guess what. You're no longer law abiding. He doesn't have to change his attitude since he qualified his statement. If he said "the phone records of citizens are none of the NSA's business" then we can talk about his attitude if he were to be elected.

  9. Re:We're so screwed. by naasking · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You've tasked these loyal people with a job to do in order to keep the USA and its citizens safe, and then removed the tools they need to do the job effectively.

    Except there's no proof that these tools are actually effective, and there are plenty of arguments made by experts that they cannot possibly be effective (too many false positives ties up scarce investigative resources). So I reject your whole premise.

  10. Re:We're so screwed. by maz2331 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It didn't stop the Boston bombing, and the government knew the perpetrators, and the same with the attempted attack the other day in Texas. Too much data is just as bad, or worse, than not enough. Hindsight is always 20/20, and in almost every attack we find that the intel was there to stop it, but wasn't acted upon. So, we're just as screwed with it as without it.

  11. Re:We're so screwed. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Lets see how well did the spy on everyone program work when two "nice" muslim guys from Phoenix, one of which was already being watched for terrorist ties, drove to Dallas and attempted to shoot up the event that offended them. If our government can't stop terrorists they know are terrorists through all the domestic spying why do some think they are safer by having the government spy on them?

  12. Re:We're so screwed. by halivar · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I disagree. They are not tasked with keeping us safe; they are tasked with safeguarding our liberties.

  13. Re:We're so screwed. by zugmeister · · Score: 5, Insightful

    .... keeping in mind that what liberty requires in regard to restrictions may be different than what the mob believes.

    I would argue that infringing on the privacy of the people to keep them (questionably) safe(r) is just exchanging one loss of liberty for another.
    How about we disregard what EVERYONE thinks and go by what the law says. How's that 4th amendment go again?