Digital Library

EPIC Launches Campaign to Reform or Sunset FISA Section 702

Ahead of the potential sunset of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) at the end of 2023, EPIC has launched a campaign to significantly reform the sweeping surveillance authority or let it sunset.

• FISA Section 702

• Intelligence Surveillance

• Surveillance Oversight

• Updates

Colorado AG’s Office Finalizes Colorado Privacy Act Rules

Last month the Colorado Attorney General’s Office finalized the Colorado Privacy Act Rules after a months-long, iterative rulemaking process.

• Consumer Privacy

• Data Protection

• Privacy Laws

• U.S. State Privacy Laws

• Updates

EPIC, Coalition Call for Hearings on FISA Section 702, Broader Surveillance Reform

EPIC has joined a coalition of civil society organizations in writing a letter to the chairmen of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the House Judiciary Committee, as well as the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, urging them to hold hearings on the need to reform FISA Section 702 and other government surveillance authorities.

• Intelligence Surveillance

• Surveillance Oversight

• Updates

Reps. Jayapal, Davidson Call for Significant Reforms to FISA Section 702

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) issued a joint statement calling for significant reforms to FISA Section 702, cautioning that “programs operating under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and claims of inherent executive authority remain a threat to Americans’ constitutional right to privacy.”

• Intelligence Surveillance

• Surveillance Oversight

• Updates

Rep. LaHood Says He Was Congressman Unlawfully Queried by FBI Under Section 702

At a House Intelligence Committee hearing today, Rep. Darin LaHood says the FBI unlawfully searched for information about him in databases of information collected under FISA Section 702.

• Intelligence Surveillance

• Surveillance Oversight

• Updates

EPIC, Coalition Call on DEA to End Illegal National License Plate Reader Program

EPIC joined a diverse coalition of civil society groups to urge the DEA to end the National License Plate Reader Program.

• Government Databases

• Privacy in Public

• Surveillance Oversight

• Updates

Court Cites EPIC Amicus Brief, Ruling for Plaintiffs in Voter Privacy Case

• Cybersecurity

• Democracy & Free Speech

• Election Security

• Voter Privacy

• Updates

EPIC Encourages NTIA to Maintain Focus on Commercial Data Harms

EPIC submitted comments yesterday in response to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)’s Request for Comment on Privacy, Equity and Civil Rights, encouraging NTIA to maintain its focus on harmful commercial data practices that disproportionately impact marginalized and historically excluded communities. EPIC urged NTIA to back robust oversight mechanisms and data minimization standards rather than an outdated self-regulatory model that fails to prevent consumer harms. Specifically, EPIC recommended algorithmic transparency requirements and mandatory risk and impact assessments because the “onus to avoid harms cannot rest on consumers.”

• Consumer Privacy

• Data Protection

• Updates

EPIC Urges OSTP to Prioritize Privacy-Protective Digital Currency Research

In comments to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), EPIC urged the agency to prioritize research and development of a token-based intermediated Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), fully anonymous digital cash, and anonymous credentials.

• Consumer Privacy

• Data Brokers

• Data Protection

• Updates

DHS OIG Report: Secret Service and ICE Illegally Used Cell-Site Simulators

A report by DHS's Inspector General revealed that the Secret Service and ICE have used cell-site simulators without obtaining warrants or following statutory privacy requirements.

• Privacy in Public

• Surveillance Oversight

• Wiretapping

• Updates