U.S. Government Online Surveillance Needs Court Look, Groups Say

A U.S. national security program for tracking communications online in search of foreign intelligence should be subject to legal challenges as a “critical safeguard” for protecting free speech and privacy rights, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and other groups told a federal appeals court.

“Upstream surveillance presents a range of singular and significant constitutional questions—questions no court has ever fully addressed,” the EFF said in a July 8 filing. It was joined by groups including Americans for Prosperity, the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University’s law school and the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

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