Amending Patriot Act would secure citizens' liberty: Editorial

Read more @ http://www.masslive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/03/amending_patriot_act_would_sec.html

 

Tech giants demand end to NSA spying, as Patriot Act is set to expire

A technology coalition headed by Apple, Microsoft, and Google urged President Barack Obama and other government officials to end the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of phone call “metadata.” In a letter addressed to the President and other key figures, the coalition, made up of privacy advocates, technology firms, and trade companies, called the NSA program “untenable,” and urged the House to move forward with reforms.

The letter, which was also addressed to high-ranking officials such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker John Boehner, singled out sections 215 and 214 of the Patriot Act, which have been used to legally justify the NSA’s data collection. The provision, which sunsets on June 1, was first used in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

Read more @ http://www.digitaltrends.com/web/tech-giants-demand-end-of-nsa-metadata-collection/

 

3 Reasons Apple Is Pushing for NSA Spying Reforms

Earlier this week, Apple and several other major U.S. tech companies renewed their calls for the U.S. government to reform its controversial electronic surveillance programs. In an open letter addressed to President Barack Obama, NSA Director Admiral Rogers, Attorney General Eric Holder, and several prominent members of Congress, Apple and dozens of other signatories urged the government to end the bulk data collection practices that were authorized under Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. As noted in the letter, Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act is used as the legal basis for the NSA’s bulk collection of electronic communications metadata. The letter also asked the government to institute “transparency and accountability mechanisms for both government and company reporting” for decisions made by the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

Apple lent its support to the letter through its membership in the Reform Government Surveillance group, a coalition of major tech companies that includes Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo. The Reform Government Surveillance sent a separate open letter to the Senate last year that called for similar reforms. Besides tech companies, other prominent signatories to the most recent letter included the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and Human Rights Watch.

While it’s no surprise that organizations like the ACLU and the EFF would be concerned with issues affecting privacy and electronic communications, it may surprise some people to know that Apple has emerged as one of the most outspoken opponents of the government’s spying programs following their exposure by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden in 2013. Apple’s strong stance against the government’s surveillance programs is even more surprising when considering that the company has historically received low marks from the EFF when it comes to protecting users’ data from government requests. Although Apple received the highest six-star rating in the EFF’s annual “Who Has Your Back?” report in 2014, the digital rights organization noted that the iPhone maker only earned one star in each of the previous three years. So why is Apple suddenly so gung-ho about government transparency and user privacy? Here are the three main reasons why Apple has become an outspoken opponent of the U.S. government’s spying programs.

Read more @ http://www.cheatsheet.com/technology/3-reasons-apple-is-pushing-for-nsa-spying-reforms.html/?a=viewall

 


"What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us."  ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~