Tag Archives: wiretapping

‘Beyond Irregular’: GOP Intel Chair Under Fire for Bizarre Trump Briefing

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Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) excoriated by colleagues and intelligence experts for skirting protocols and taking newly-obtained information straight to Trump

By Jon Queally, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 3-22-2017

Photo: Screenshot

The ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday said the “beyond irregular” behavior of the committee’s Republican chairman has “underscored the imperative of an independent investigation” into Russian interference in last year’s election—comments that capped off a series of explosive Capitol Hill developments surrounding a controversy that refuses to die.

Rep. Devin Nunes of California, the Republican chairman of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, came under fire later by congressional colleagues after he went outside normal protocols by briefing President Donald Trump earlier in the day on classified materials that had yet to be vetted by his own committee. Continue reading →

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House Intel Committee Gives Trump Monday Deadline for Wiretapping Proof

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“The only question is why the president would make up such a thing,” says Rep. Adam Schiff of California

By Deirdre Fulton, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 3-12-2017

The White House has been asked by lawmakers to produce evidence of President Donald Trump’s wiretapping claims.

Leading members of the House Intelligence Committee have demanded that President Donald Trump provide evidence by Monday of his claim that Trump Tower was wiretapped—possibly by former President Barack Obama.

The Associated Press reported Saturday that committee chairman, Devin Nunes of California, and the panel’s ranking Democrat, Adam Schiff of California, made the request in a letter sent to the White House last week.

Other lawmakers have made similar demands, including U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), as Common Dreams reported Wednesday.  Continue reading →

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Caving to Post-Orlando Fear, House Betrays Civil Liberties

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Massie-Lofgren amendment fails 198-222 in turnaround for House

By Nadia Prupis, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 6-17-2016

The amendment would also have prohibited the government from mandating backdoors into encrypted communications. (Photo: Antonio Netto/flickr/cc)

The amendment would also have prohibited the government from mandating backdoors into encrypted communications. (Photo: Antonio Netto/flickr/cc)

Late Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives blocked an amendment that would have prohibited warrantless surveillance of Americans’ electronic communications and banned the government from forcing technology companies to install backdoors to encrypted devices.

The amendment to the House’s annual military spending bill, introduced by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), failed by a vote of 198-222. The roll call is here. Continue reading →

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Chomsky, Snowden, Greenwald on Privacy in the Age of Surveillance

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Panel discussion challenges the rhetoric that national security requires that governments can access individual communications.

By Lauren McCauley, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 3-26-2016

Photo via Facebook

Photo via Facebook

What is privacy and what is an individual’s right to it?

That is the question that renowned linguist and MIT professor Noam Chomsky, National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower Edward Snowden, and Intercept co-founding editor Glenn Greenwald sought to answer on Friday evening as the three (virtually) shared a stage for a panel discussion at the University of Arizona in Tuscon.

Coming amid the FBI’s public battle against Apple as well as days after the bombings in Brussels last week, which have spurred another round of calls for heightened security and surveillance, the conversation challenged the rhetoric that national security requires that governments can access individual communications. Continue reading →

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New Bill Edges UK Towards ‘Surveillance State’

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‘No other Government has legislated to retain all our internet records.’

By Andrea Germanos, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 11-4-2015

Critics warn that the draft Investigatory Powers Bill would represent an unprecedented expansion of the UK government's surveillance powers. (Photo: Paul Downey/flickr/cc)

Critics warn that the draft Investigatory Powers Bill would represent an unprecedented expansion of the UK government’s surveillance powers. (Photo: Paul Downey/flickr/cc)

The UK unveiled on Wednesday a draft bill to expand the government’s spy powers that privacy watchdogs are decrying as a further step towards becoming a surveillance state.

“[T]his long-awaited Bill constitutes a breath-taking attack on the internet security of every man, woman and child in our country,” stated Shami Chakrabarti, Director of the UK-based rights group Liberty.

Home Secretary Theresa May unveiled the draft Investigatory Powers Bill and called it “unprecedented.” Continue reading →

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With New Privacy Bill, California Delivers ‘Landmark Win for Digital Privacy’

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California now has the most comprehensive tech privacy bill in the nation and should be model for other states, say advocates

By Nadia Prupis, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 8-9-2015

CalECPA is "a landmark win for digital privacy and all Californians." (Photo: Yuri Samoilov/flickr/cc)

CalECPA is “a landmark win for digital privacy and all Californians.” (Photo: Yuri Samoilov/flickr/cc)

In what privacy advocates are hailing as a landmark victory, California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law a sweeping tech privacy bill which will require police in the state to obtain warrants for access to telecommunications data, including emails, text messages, GPS coordinates, and other digital information.

“This is a major win for privacy and for Californians. With so much of our information existing online, it’s important that our communications are protected from government access to the strongest degree possible,” said G.S. Hans, policy counsel and director for the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT). Continue reading →

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What Price Security – Kenyan Style

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Uhuru Kenyatta, President of Kenya. Photo by Nairobi123 (State House of Kenya/ Government of Kenya) via Wikimedia Commons

Uhuru Kenyatta, President of Kenya. Photo by Nairobi123 (State House of Kenya/ Government of Kenya) via Wikimedia Commons

All around the world, governments are worried about terrorism.  And, under the guise of stopping terrorism, tthey make laws. These laws differ in the exact details, but one theme that seems to run through them all is restrictions placed on their citizens. The latest to follow this trend is Kenya.

On Tuesday, the Kenyan government’s NGO (non-governmental organization) coordination board announced the deregistration of 510 NGOs. The board said in a statement that “some NGOs have been and continue to be used for criminal activities, including as conduits of terrorism financing in Kenya and in the Horn of Africa”. Fifteen of them are suspected of money-laundering and financing terrorism.

The statement went on to say; “The board has with immediate effect deregistered these organizations, frozen their bank accounts and forwarded information on them to relevant government security agencies for immediate action.” Continue reading →

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