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.

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1,837 Articles
High tension electrical power lines at a transfer station along Highway 58 are viewed on March 28, 2017, near Buttonwillow, California.

U.S. Cyber Command, Russia and Critical Infrastructure: What Norms and Laws Apply?

Emplacing malware in critical infrastructure on which the civilian population depends is a decision States must not take lightly. It may also violate international law, but 'responding…
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands ahead a meeting in Helsinki, on July 16, 2018.

To Congress: If Russians Seek to Provide Dirt, Make it a Requirement to Report!

The Anti-Collusion Act, introduced Wednesday by Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.), would require everyone running for federal, state, or local office to report offers of assistance…
Papers with the words "Confidential" and "Secret" written across.

Balancing the Law and Reporting: Reflections on the Assange Indictment and What It Means for Journalists

The superseding indictment of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has again sent First Amendment guardians to the ramparts, when what’s needed is a calm discussion of what threat…

Unfinished Business: What Mueller Didn’t Cover, But Congress Can

An itemization of what the Mueller Report left untouched or undone, and where Congress can pick up the thread.
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L’Affaire d’Assange: Why His Extradition May Be Blocked

The Department of Justice’s release of a superseding indictment accusing Julian Assange of numerous Espionage Act violations has stirred grave concern among defenders of a free…
) Former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden poses for a photo during an interview in an undisclosed location in December 2013 in Moscow, Russia.

The Snowden Effect, Six Years On

Six years ago, the world was introduced to a previously unknown government contractor who revealed the National Security Agency (NSA) was conducting an unparalleled level of warrantless…
Just Security

Cooking the WMD Books: Politicizing the 2019 State Department Compliance Report

"I know. I used to work in State Department’s Bureau of Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance and then in the Office of the Under Secretary responsible for this report.…
Julian Assange leaves after speaking to the media from the balcony of the Embassy Of Ecuador on May 19, 2017 in London, England.

Assange May Have Committed a Crime, But the Espionage Act Is the Wrong Law to Prosecute

Is Wikileaks leader Julian Assange a journalist? If journalism is a profession, it is because, like other professions, it has standards and a code of ethics. As an example, a journalist…
A Carnival Cruise ship is docked at the PortMiami as the company becomes one of the first to be sued under Title III of the Helms-Burton Act at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse on May 02, 2019 in Miami, Florida.

No Oligarch Left Behind: Trump’s Title III Cuba Policy

After the Revolution, Cuba expropriated the property of U.S. nationals and Cubans, including those who (like my family) came to the United States. In May, the Trump administration…
Russian President Vladimir Putin looks at U.S. President Donald Trump during the welcoming ceremony prior to the G20 Summit's Plenary Meeting on November 30, 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Countering Russia’s Malign Influence Operations

Putin’s successes with covert action show that such operations are not only more effective and cheaper than conventional military operations, but they have also resulted in far…
Trump and Barr arrive together for the presentation of the Public Safety Officer Medals of Valor in the East Room of the White House May 22, 2019 in Washington, DC.

Bill Barr’s Dangerous New Powers

Former Justice Dept and National Security Council officials explain their concerns about unprecedented powers President Trump handed his A.G.
Julian Assange is restrained by men and police.

Indictment of Assange for Espionage Directly Threatens Press Freedoms

This article is co-published with The Bulwark.   Boy, did I ever get this wrong. Back in mid-April, when the Department of Justice unveiled an indictment of Julian Assange,…
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