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Several of the programs Snowden revealed are authorized under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Amendments Act. The 2008 law was scheduled to sunset on December 31, but in a last-ditch effort Thursday, Congress extend its authority through January 19.
The Trump administration, meanwhile, believes that the authorization doesn't really expire until April, leaving lawmakers several months to either reform or strengthen the provision. Hanging in the balance is the legal framework the government largely relies on to conduct mass surveillance of foreigners, and Americans who communicate with them. Which makes it all the more concerning that the fight over Section 702's future has taken place largely in the dark.
Source : Congress Is Debating Warrantless Surveillance in the Dark
(Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Monday December 25 2017, @09:07AM (1 child)
What you are describing is industrial espionage. There is a time and place and a market for that king of thing. And, it's illegal.
That doesn't address the issue at hand though. The issue at hand is spying on individual, private citizens, who are not involved in Secret Agent crap, NOT involved in industrial espionage, NOT selling corporate or national secrets to the highest bidder, NOT involved with a terrorist group - need I go on? Your attitude seems to be that, because one person in xxx thousand might be a terrorist, that justifies spying on ALL persons. I believe that your paranoia has made you to sick to function properly in any decent society.
Depending on which threats you are talking about, I have a response.
Threat A: primarily from China, in their determination to dominate the US economically, militarily, and politically, we aren't fighting back because our "leaders" have sold us out.
Threat B: Terrorism, primarily Islamic terrorism, is such a threat because our leaders don't know what the hell they are doing. Air strikes, tanks, and drones have their uses, but they don't win hearts and minds. Our clumsy use of those weapons create more enemies, each time we use them. If we understood the enemy, and fought that enemy intelligently, we might win.
Threat C: Globalism, again we've been sold out. We have no leaders who are willing to fight globalism, because they are personally getting rich off of helping foreigners to steal our wealth.
This country probably won't fight back, and certainly not fight back intelligently, so long as corporations and elected officials are making money off of the attacks. Read, military industrial complex. MIT has zero incentive to actually WIN the war on terror, because it is so profitable. It is in their interest to extend that war into the next century, and beyond.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 25 2017, @10:52PM
The concept of international law is a lie. Might makes right.
Even if you do pretend that the UN matters... there are 5 countries with a veto. Those 5 countries can do whatever they wish.
BTW, it's Threat A, which is inherently tied to Threat C. China routinely conducts industrial espionage. Given that they won't stop, we're stupid to not return the favor. There are smaller players too: France has openly admitted to industrial espionage. Cuba does it with a focus on biotech.