Technology And Liberty News http://www.aclu.org/news/all/feed/technology-and-liberty en Privacy and Intelligence Experts Join Call for Oversight of Massachusetts Domestic Surveillance Operations http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/privacy-and-intelligence-experts-join-call-oversight-massac  


As Massachusetts legislature considers bill to prevent intelligence abuses, ACLU briefing highlights need to protect political, religious, and other activity


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: media@aclu.org

]]> 2009-10-21T00:00:00-05:00 Jessica Monaco 19837 at http://www.aclu.org NYCLU Urges Public Education and Voluntary Vaccine for H1N1 Flu, Warns Vaccine Mandate Violates Privacy Rights http://www.aclu.org/technology-and-liberty/nyclu-urges-public-education-and-voluntary-vaccine-h1n1-flu-warns-vaccine-man NEW YORK — The New York Civil Liberties Union today urged the New York State Department of Health to withdraw its mandate that all health care workers be vaccinated against both the seasonal flu and the swine flu because it violates the right to privacy of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. The NYCLU instead urged the state to take strong public education steps and adopt a voluntary vaccine protocol.

]]> 2009-10-13T00:00:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20119 at http://www.aclu.org Department Of Homeland Security Inspector General Report Underscores Flaws In System For Settling Watch List Disputes http://www.aclu.org/technology-and-liberty/department-homeland-security-inspector-general-report-underscores-flaws-syste WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) inspector general today issued a report stating that the agency's process for clearing the names of travelers who have been mistakenly placed on government watch lists provides little or no relief for most travelers and is plagued by delays and inadequate and insecure information technology. The report further concludes that some aspects of the program, the Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (TRIP), lack oversight, and that in some cases the program's redress procedures lack necessary due process protections.

]]> 2009-10-09T00:00:00-05:00 pbradshaw 19791 at http://www.aclu.org Senate Committee Passes Patriot Act Reauthorization Bill http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/senate-committee-passes-patriot-act-reauthorization-bill WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee passed the USA PATRIOT Act Extension Act of 2009 today, a bill which falls far short of restoring the necessary civil liberties protections lacking in the original Patriot Act. The bill, passed by the committee after two sessions of debate, makes only minor changes to the disastrous Patriot Act and was further watered down by amendments adopted during markup. The American Civil Liberties Union had endorsed the JUSTICE Act, an alternative bill that would heavily reform not only the Patriot Act but other overly broad surveillance laws.

]]> 2009-10-08T00:00:00-05:00 amanda_simon 19788 at http://www.aclu.org NYCLU Calls on NYPD to Make Public Details on 'Ring of Steel' Expansion http://www.aclu.org/national-security-technology-and-liberty/nyclu-calls-nypd-make-public-details-ring-steel-expansion NEW YORK — The New York Civil Liberties Union today called on the NYPD to provide the public with basic details of its multi-million dollar plan to blanket Midtown with a computerized network of surveillance cameras and license plate readers – a massive expansion of the “Ring of Steel” surveillance system being developed in lower Manhattan.

]]> 2009-10-05T00:00:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20121 at http://www.aclu.org TSA Body Scanning Technology Strips Away Privacy http://www.aclu.org/technology-and-liberty/tsa-body-scanning-technology-strips-away-privacy The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has revealed plans to install 150 body scanning machines for primary security screenings at airports across the country. The American Civil Liberties Union strongly opposes the expanded use of this invasive technology, which amounts to a virtual strip search and reveals strikingly graphic images of passengers’ bodies, including intimate medical details like colostomy bags or evidence of mastectomy.

]]> 2009-10-01T00:00:00-05:00 cobrien 19773 at http://www.aclu.org Troubling Start For Patriot Act Reauthorization http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/troubling-start-patriot-act-reauthorization WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee began its debate today on a version of a bill to extend the USA Patriot Act that falls far short of including necessary civil liberties protections. The committee substituted the original language of the bill with a watered-down version offered by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT). The American Civil Liberties Union has endorsed the JUSTICE Act, an alternative bill that would reform not only the Patriot Act but other overly broad surveillance laws.

]]> 2009-10-01T00:00:00-05:00 amanda_simon 19772 at http://www.aclu.org Legislation To Be Introduced To Repeal Immunity For Telecommunications Companies http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/legislation-be-introduced-repeal-immunity-telecommunication WASHINGTON – A bill is expected to be introduced in the Senate today that would repeal the immunity granted to telecommunications companies under the FISA Amendments Act (FAA) passed last year. By including the immunity provision in the FAA, Congress ensured the dismissal of active court cases pending against companies that aided the Bush administration in its illegal, unconstitutional and warrantless wiretapping program. The bill, the Retroactive Immunity Repeal Act, will be introduced today by Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Russell Feingold (D-WI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT).

]]> 2009-09-29T00:00:00-05:00 amanda_simon 19767 at http://www.aclu.org FBI Data Mining And Collection Programs Threaten Privacy Of Innocent Americans http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/fbi-data-mining-and-collection-programs-threaten-privacy-in WASHINGTON – The FBI and its National Security Branch Analysis Center (NSAC) have collected 1.5 billion records from public and private sources for a massive data mining operation, according to documents recently obtained by Wired magazine. The records collected by the FBI include financial records from corporate databases, such as hotel and rental car company transactions; millions of “suspicious activity reports” from financial institutions; millions of records from commercial data aggregators; a multitude of law enforcement and non-law enforcement government databases; and public information gleaned from telephone books and news articles. The NSAC records include the FBI’s Investigative Data Warehouse, which was identified in a 2007 Department of Justice Inspector General report as the database storing information collected by the FBI through the use of National Security Letters (NSLs).

]]> 2009-09-24T00:00:00-05:00 amanda_simon 19764 at http://www.aclu.org Fusion Centers To Obtain Access To Classified Military Intelligence http://www.aclu.org/national-security_technology-and-liberty/fusion-centers-obtain-access-classified-military-intelligen WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced Monday that it was giving state and local fusion centers access to the classified military intelligence in Department of Defense (DOD) databases. The federal government has facilitated the growth of a network of fusion centers since 9/11 to expand information collection and sharing practices among law enforcement agencies, the private sector and the intelligence community.

]]> 2009-09-15T00:00:00-05:00 amanda_simon 12595 at http://www.aclu.org