EFF Demands Public Release of FBI Surveillance Rules

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Release

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Contact:

David Sobel
 Senior Counsel
 Electronic Frontier Foundation
 sobel () eff org
 +1 202 797-9009 x104

EFF Demands Public Release of FBI Surveillance Rules

Lawsuit Seeks Disclosure of Guidelines Governing
Investigations of Americans

Washington, D.C. - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
filed suit against the Department of Justice today,
demanding the public release of the surveillance guidelines
that govern investigations of Americans by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The FBI's Domestic Investigative Operational Guidelines
went into effect in December of 2008 and detail the
Bureau's procedures and standards for implementing the
Attorney General's Guidelines on approved surveillance
strategies.

"The Attorney General's Guidelines are troubling, allowing
for open investigative 'assessments' of any American
without factual basis or reasonable suspicion," said EFF
Senior Counsel David Sobel.  "The withholding of the
Operational Guidelines compounds our concerns.  Americans
have the right to know the basic surveillance policies used
by federal investigators and how their privacy is -- or is
not -- being protected."

The FBI's general counsel has acknowledged that "the
expansion of techniques available  [to the Bureau] has
raised privacy and civil liberties concerns."
Investigations can include the electronic collection of
information from online sources and computer databases, as
well as the use of grand jury subpoenas to obtain telephone
and email subscriber information.  Other recent policy
changes allow the FBI to engage in free-ranging
investigation of Internet sites, libraries, and religious
institutions.

EFF's lawsuit comes after the Department of Justice failed
to respond to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request
for a complete copy of the Domestic Investigative
Operational Guidelines.  The suit demands the immediate
release of the guidelines, as they are being withheld in
violation of federal law.

"These policies have been in effect for more than six
months and could have great impact on ordinary Americans'
lives," said Sobel.  "The FBI must follow the law and
release these guidelines to the public."

For the full complaint:
http://www.eff.org/files/filenode/FBI_guidelines/fbi_diog_complaint_final.pdf

For this release:
http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2009/06/23

About EFF

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil
liberties organization working to protect rights in the
digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages and
challenges industry and government to support free
expression and privacy online. EFF is a member-supported
organization and maintains one of the most linked-to
websites in the world at http://www.eff.org/


   -end-

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