EPIC has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit about "Future Attribute Screening Technology", a "Minority Report" program that purports to identify individuals who will commit crimes in the future. EPIC filed the complaint after the DHS failed to respond to EPIC's FOIA request for information. EPIC charged that the agency uses secret algorithms to identify behavioral "abnormalities" that the agency claims indicate "mal intent." "Minority Report" is a 2002 movie with Tom Cruise about "a special police unit is able to arrest murderers before they commit their crime."
EPIC has filed a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission about Samsung's SmartTvs. "Samsung routinely intercepts and records the private communications of consumers in their homes," EPIC wrote. EPIC detailed widespread consumer objections and charged that "privacy notices" do not diminish the harm to American consumers. In setting out the privacy violations, EPIC cited the FTC Act, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, The Cable Act, and the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. EPIC also noted a recent speech of FTC Chair Edith Ramirez about privacy and consumer products. EPIC asked the FTC to enjoin Samsung and other companies that engage in similar practices.
EPIC has obtained nearly $30,000 in litigation fees as a result of a Freedom of Information Act case against the FBI concerning a new surveillance technology. EPIC's lawsuit produced the release of more than 4,000 pages of documents about a phony cell tower technique called "Stingray." The documents obtained by EPIC revealed that the FBI used the devices to monitor cell phones without a warrant, and provided Stingrays to other law enforcement agencies. Following objections by Senator Grassley, the FBI restricted Stingray use. In EPIC v. FBI, No. 12-667, the Federal District Court awarded EPIC nearly all of the attorneys' fees requested.
