The National Security Agency only had good intentions to save phone records but the surveillance program finally ended last Sunday. This was as required by the law which will actually be replaced with more tightly targeted surveillance methods. The White House shared the news last Friday, making a lot of people, tech companies, and privacy advocates happy.
There’s always been the question of broad government surveillance and this transition will hopefully bring a positive chance. Especially now that there’s heightened national security measures, it is important that the government agency work hard to help the citizens. You can say this came at the right time but it’s been an issue for over two years now.
If you may remember, Edward Snowden, a former NSA contractor exposed the program. A law was passed six months ago and now it’s finally being enforced in the United States. One major effect of the Freedom Act is that law enforcement agencies and the National Security Agency cannot collect phone call records just so they can check any irregular activity. If they want to check, analysts should get a court order first before they can monitor any suspicious calls. Such data called as “metadata” are usually collected in bulk. They don’t contain conversations but only the numbers contacted and the time of calls.
Interestingly, Republican lawmakers want to maintain this collection for two more years, until 2017, especially since the recent terrorist attack in Paris. Hopefully, this shutting down of bulk phone surveillance program by the NSA will bring more people peace of mind even just a little bit.
VIA: Reuters
“The National Security Agency only had good intentions…”
Suuuuuuure, they did…