US Court Decision Protecting Data Targeted by the NSA

The US citizens have been concerned about online surveillance and data collecting conducted by the NSA for a while now. However, according to new reports, their concerns may have finally been addressed by an appeals court, which may have shaped how the country will treat NSA’s actions from now on.

Court says data swept up by the NSA is protected by the Fourth Amendment https://t.co/jfu5pQU8wL pic.twitter.com/xS6u8DkFxa

— Engadget (@engadget) December 19, 2019

In a recent court ruling, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals decided that American communications that the NSA was collecting under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Section 702, as well as PRISM, should be protected by Fourth Amendment. In other words, any unreasonable searches or seizures will be barred off. According to judges, intelligence agencies’ efforts to fight terrorism led them to collect vast amounts of data. However, a majority of this ‘evidence,’ which was allowed under the Fourth Amendment, maybe violating this very amendment. This led the court to a decision that it is fair to challenge the data use, and that it should be done on a constitutional grounds. The current laws appear to be outdated, which is why the ‘accidental collection’ of data belonging to Americans raised a number of new questions. Attorneys working for the US government tried to argue, stating that the US Constitution does not mention phone call data or private emails. Back in 2011, the US charged Agron Hasbajrami with helping a terrorist group based in Pakistan by providing material support. Back then, the intelligence services collected a large amount of evidence against the suspect by scooping online data. At first, the suspect pleaded guilty after being told that the government has no warrantless tapes against him. Eventually, however, the government had to admit that it studied the suspect’s emails without obtaining a warrant first. After learning of it, Hasbajrami withdrew his plea and requested that the evidence is tossed out. This development led many to believe that the NSA’s mass surveillance is reasonable and that it delivers results. However, the decision brought the Hasbajrami case back to the district court, which might not allow him to avoid prison, but it certainly brings up a valuable point to light. With the new ruling, US officials might have to be very careful when it comes to using the NSA-collected data and using it for similar purposes.