Intelligence & Surveillance
Just Security’s expert authors provide legal and policy analysis of intelligence and surveillance activities, focusing on their impact on national security and on civil liberties and privacy rights, and their oversight by Congress and the courts.
1,837 Articles
Executive Order 12333 and the Golden Number
I recently moderated a debate between Professor Nathan Sales of Syracuse Law, Professor Laura Donohue of Georgetown Law, Bob Litt, general counsel of the Office of the Director…
Twitter is Suing the US Government in an Effort to Reveal Surveillance Information
Twitter filed a case in the Northern District of California (docket number 14-cv-04480) on Oct. 7 seeking a court order that would allow the company to reveal more precise information…
Smartphone “Backdoors” and Open Computing
Recently I wrote a longish post over at the Cato Institute’s blog trying to deflate some of the increasing hysteria over the announcement that Apple and Google will be turning…
Bugs, Bounties, and Blowback
Last week news broke of a major software bug—now termed “Shellshock”—in open-source software used in Linux and UNIX operating systems. Security experts have warned that…
It’s Time to Pass the USA Freedom Act—Warts and All
Thirteen years after 9/11, the United States Congress appeared poised to begin the long overdue process of reining-in the intelligence establishment’s runaway surveillance practices.…
The Need for Both Legal and Technical Privacy Protections
Last week, Apple and Google came under intense criticism from the law enforcement and national security communities for their decisions to encrypt user data when devices are locked.…
FBI is Hurting Apple and Google’s Competitiveness with Crypto Backdoor Demands
Last week, FBI Director James B. Comey dispatched his minions to yell at Apple and Google for architecting their smartphones such that government officials cannot decrypt information…
A Briefing on European Developments in Accounting for and Advancing Counterterrorism Actions
Fallout from European action during the “War on Terror” is ongoing in national and regional courts. The European Court of Human Rights has taken up a number of cases…
Australia Introduces Foreign Fighter Bill on Eve of Obama Chairing UNSC Meeting on Foreign Fighters
The Australian Government introduced a proposed law on Sept. 22 aimed at preventing Australian residents from traveling abroad to join terrorist organizations. Called the Counter-Terrorism…
United States Stops Spying on Western Europe—for Now
The CIA has paused its espionage activities against “friendly governments in Western Europe,” according to a report by the Associated Press and ABC News that broke on Sept.…
A Year of Great Debates on National Security Law at the Just Security Blog
September 23, 2014 marks the official birthdate of Just Security. It has been a terrific first year! Our goal has been to raise and broaden the conversation on U.S. national security…
Reading Jack Goldsmith’s STELLARWIND Memo (Part II)
Last week, I tried to read between the lines of Jack Goldsmith’s 2004 memorandum on the STELLARWIND surveillance program to explain why the bulk collection of Internet metadata…