Federal appeals court rules NSA telephone surveillance program illegal

The NSA phone surveillance program disclosed by former contractor Edward Snowden ruled illegal by federal appeals court.

Published
Updated
55 seconds read time

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan has asked Congress to find a middle ground between national security and citizens' privacy, after saying the National Security Agency's phone surveillance program went too far.

Federal appeals court rules NSA telephone surveillance program illegal | TweakTown.com

The court's ruling will put added pressure on Congress to either scrap the program entirely, or make major changes. Using the Patriot Act as a front for its massive data collection, the NSA reportedly collected information on almost every call made in the United States - with data entered into a national database. It remained secret until former NSA contractor Edward Snowden unveiled the illegal phone data sweeps.

"In light of the asserted national security interests at stake, we deem it prudent to pause to allow an opportunity for debate in Congress that may (or may not) profoundly alter the legal landscape," said Judge Gerard E. Lynch, as he announced the decision.

Not surprisingly, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was happy with the court's decision regarding the NSA's questionable surveillance programs.

"This decision is a resounding victory for the law," said Alex Abdo, ACLU staff attorney, in a public statement. "For years, the government secretly spied on millions of innocent Americans based on a shockingly broad interpretation of its authority. The court rightly rejected the government's theory that it may stockpile information on all of us in case that information proves useful in the future."

An experienced tech journalist and marketing specialist, Michael joins TweakTown to cover everything from cars & electric vehicles to solar and green energy topics. A former Staff Writer at DailyTech, Michael is now the Cars & Electric Vehicles News Reporter and will contribute news stories on a daily basis. In addition to contributing here, Michael also runs his own tech blog, AlamedaTech.com, while he looks to remain busy in the tech world.

Newsletter Subscription

Related Tags