Major companies, including Google Inc., Facebook and Microsoft Corp., insist that investigators present a warrant to compel disclosure of the contents of stored communications.
Ironically, major opposition to reform is coming from federal regulatory agencies, supposed champions of consumer rights. Instead of serving subpoenas on the targets of their investigations, as they always used to do, these agencies want the authority to demand email and other documents from the online service providers to which we’ve entrusted our digital lives. And the agencies want to get this data without the approval of a judge.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are among the regulatory agencies with subpoena power. In this Internet age, allowing them to compel the service providers that hold so much information about us to disclose that information without judicial authorization could fundamentally change the relationship between the government and its citizens.
Gregory T. Nojeim is a senior counsel at the Center for Democracy and Technology and director of its Project on Freedom, Security and Technology.
« Previous 1 2
Want Roll Call on your doorstep?
SIGN UPAlready a subscriber?
Sign up to have the print PDF emailed to you.
Roll Call has launched a new feature, Hill Navigator, to advise congressional staffers and would-be staffers on how to manage workplace issues on Capitol Hill. Please send us your questions — anything from office etiquette, to handling awkward moments, to what happens when the work life gets too personal. Submissions will be treated anonymously.
