New EPIC Resource Calls on Congress to Close the Data Broker Loophole 

EPIC published a new one-pager that calls on Congress to protect people from unchecked state surveillance. The one pager details how government agencies evade Fourth Amendment protections using the third-party doctrine as a loophole to purchase personal information from data brokers, even though government agencies would have to get a warrant to access the same information directly. 

The one pager states, “Federal privacy laws generally do not regulate the commercial aggregation of personal data nor the sale of that data to government agencies. Some statutes address parts of the problem, but they only apply to certain sectors or specific types of personal information, tackling only the tip of the iceberg.” The resource calls on Congress to place limits on data brokers’ collection, use, retention, and disclosure of personal information and to pass the protections outlined in the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act. EPIC recently endorsed the Government Surveillance Reform Act, which incorporates the protections of the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act. 

EPIC has previously published other resources highlighting how data brokers harm different communities, including one pagers focused on data-broker-fueled harm to immigrant communities, domestic violence survivors, national security, and public officials.