Hi,

The FBI, CIA, and NSA desperately want to keep spying on you.

That’s why these agencies are doing everything they can to protect Section 702, a dangerous portion of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that allows agencies to collect, use, and share our personal data, including online communications, without a warrant.

Right now, Congress is considering whether or not to reauthorize Section 702, and these agencies are scared they could lose the vote. They’re meeting with Senators, publishing reports, and even penning fearmongering op-eds to make sure they maintain their mass surveillance powers.1

But we have voices from across the political spectrum lining up against illegal mass surveillance. We need to keep the pressure on Congress to finally end out-of-control spying on Americans.2

Sign the petition: Congress must end mass surveillance!

Section 702 allows intelligence agencies to collect, use, and disseminate content that moves across U.S. internet companies (like Google, Facebook, Microsoft) or via U.S. internet networks (like AT&T, Verizon, and Cox).3

Theoretically, Section 702 should only be used against non-US persons located abroad. But because the law allows the collection of any communications sent to, from, or about a target, agencies like the NSA and FBI can easily surveil Americans through overly-broad “backdoor” searches.3

Agencies regularly ignore even these loose rules, and simply use Section 702 to monitor huge batches of Americans’ communications. That’s what the FBI did last month when agents recently searched Section 702 data for information about a U.S. Senator, a state Senator, and a judge.4

In March, Demand Progress uncovered documents revealing that the FBI unlawfully scoured Section 702’s massive surveillance troves using the name of a U.S. Congressman.

Despite pledging to rein in their spying on Americans, every year the FBI alone conducts hundreds of thousands of backdoor searches.5

The intelligence agencies are giving their best PR pitch to convince Congress and the public that warrantless mass surveillance is necessary. But we know that Section 702 is overly broad, dangerous, and threatens Americans’ Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

It’s time for Congress to end mass surveillance by overhauling Section 702 and FISA writ large — or refuse to reauthorize Section 702 altogether.

Add your name: End warrantless mass surveillance!

Thanks for taking action,

Joey and the team at Demand Progress

Sources:

  1. The Hill, “Reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is a national security imperative,” August 16, 2023.
  2. The Hill, “FBI improperly used Section 702 surveillance powers on US senator,” July 21, 2023.
  3. Washington Post, “The fight over an expiring surveillance authority just kicked off,” January 13, 2023.
  4. NBC, “FBI wrongly searched for U.S. senator and state senator in Section 702 spy data, court says,” July 21, 2020.
  5. Wired, “The FBI’s Most Controversial Surveillance Tool Is Under Threat,” February 10, 2023.

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