NSA stops bulk collection of phone metadata

[Deleted member 178]

Content source

http://betanews.com/2015/11/29/nsa-stops-bulk-collection-of-phone-metadata/

Instead of wide scale dredging of data, the NSA will now engage in more targeted surveillance programs -- something that privacy advocates have been calling for for some time. The scaling back of surveillance has not come out of the blue; it's became of a legal requirement earlier in the year that has now been implemented two and half years after Edward Snowdenblew the whistle on NSA spying.


Following the introduction of the USA Freedom Act, the NSA will no longer be able to indiscriminately collect metadata about phone calls in the hope of finding something suspicious, but will instead have to run targeted operations based on evidence. A court order is now required to force a telecom company to allow the monitoring of the call records of individuals or groups of people.

Initially set up in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the NSA's surveillance program was pitched as the tool needed to track down those responsible. But privacy groups and opponents of the surveillance said it was far too intrusive and infringed upon the rights of millions of innocent people. Critics also point to a review that found that not one anti-terrorism breakthrough could be directly attributed to the surveillance program.

The White House says that data that has already been collected will be retained until 29 February for "data integrity purposes". After this date, the data will be deleted.

really?

 

[CMLew]

Ok, that's a shocker.....

 

[upnorth]

Quote : " NSA will no longer be able to indiscriminately collect metadata about phone calls in the hope of finding something suspicious, but will instead have to run targeted operations based on evidence. "

I always enjoy a good fairy tail...

 

[frogboy]

At least down here they, the Government is up front about it and tell us they collect all our Metadata and store it for two years.

 

[cruelsister]

Note that they can still collect any data that is "relevent" to an investigation. And they are the folks that determine what is relevant and what is not. So essentially it can be business as usual.

The lay press is really very gullible.

 

[LabZero]

My interpretation: "you say you don't control me ... ok then I feel free to ...."
Do you know honeypot?
They still can collect relevant data.

 

[jamescv7]

Well still its like they change only the name but the concept remains the same so overall a long journey for privacy problem.