sailingaway
05-16-2013, 07:26 PM
The FBI appears to believe it has the authority to rummage through people's emails without a warrant, even after a court decision directed the agency not to, according to documents obtained this week by the American Civil Liberties Union.
The ACLU's blog says it received excerpts from the FBI's Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide from 2008 and 2012 and both say that under the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the FBI can look at any emails that are more than 180 days old with just a subpoena, not a warrant.
"In 1986, that might have made sense," said Ben Wizner, director of the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project. "The World Wide Web hadn't been created yet. Now, people have years of emails, calendars, photos, their diaries, all of this stuff is in a cloud."
In 2010, a federal appeals court ruled that the FBI did, however, need a warrant even for emails older than 180 days. But based on the FBI documents sent to the ACLU in response to a public records request, the FBI's position on warrantless email snooping remains unchanged.
"The documents we have, suggest that they aren't following the [court decision]," Wizner said.
Wizner said the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decision only applies to its district, which covers Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.
In an email Friday, FBI spokesperson Christopher Allen said the FBI follows the dictates of each district.
“In all investigations, the FBI obtains evidence in accordance with the laws and Constitution of the United States, and consistent with Attorney General guidelines," Allen said. "Our field offices work closely with U.S. Attorney’s Office to adhere to the legal requirements of their particular districts as set forth in case law or court decisions/precedent."
It's unclear if the FBI actually reads people's emails without a warrant. But Wizner said the fact that the FBI has fought hard to keep the government from requiring a warrant, suggests that the agency is accessing emails.
more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/10/warrantless-email-searches-fbi_n_3253762.html?utm_hp_ref=tw
The ACLU's blog says it received excerpts from the FBI's Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide from 2008 and 2012 and both say that under the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the FBI can look at any emails that are more than 180 days old with just a subpoena, not a warrant.
"In 1986, that might have made sense," said Ben Wizner, director of the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project. "The World Wide Web hadn't been created yet. Now, people have years of emails, calendars, photos, their diaries, all of this stuff is in a cloud."
In 2010, a federal appeals court ruled that the FBI did, however, need a warrant even for emails older than 180 days. But based on the FBI documents sent to the ACLU in response to a public records request, the FBI's position on warrantless email snooping remains unchanged.
"The documents we have, suggest that they aren't following the [court decision]," Wizner said.
Wizner said the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decision only applies to its district, which covers Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.
In an email Friday, FBI spokesperson Christopher Allen said the FBI follows the dictates of each district.
“In all investigations, the FBI obtains evidence in accordance with the laws and Constitution of the United States, and consistent with Attorney General guidelines," Allen said. "Our field offices work closely with U.S. Attorney’s Office to adhere to the legal requirements of their particular districts as set forth in case law or court decisions/precedent."
It's unclear if the FBI actually reads people's emails without a warrant. But Wizner said the fact that the FBI has fought hard to keep the government from requiring a warrant, suggests that the agency is accessing emails.
more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/10/warrantless-email-searches-fbi_n_3253762.html?utm_hp_ref=tw