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Congress demands answers from White House over 'invasive' surveillance program known as Hemisphere that has tracked TRILLIONS of phone records for Americans each year - even if they are not suspected of a crime

2023-11-22

[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Congress is demanding answers from the Biden administration about a secret spying program that tracks more than a trillion phone records from innocent and unsuspecting Americans each year.

The under-the-radar system, known as Data Analytical Services or 'Hemisphere,' has been in operation for over a decade. It allows federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to tap into the phone records of U.S. citizens who have not been accused of any crime.

Under the Hemisphere program the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) pays phone service provider AT&T to hand over phone records as far back as 1987.

The deal first came to light in 2013 after a bombshell New York Times report, but it has since been expanded.

The under-the-radar system, known as Data Analytical Services or 'Hemisphere', has been in operation for over a decade.It allows federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to tap into the phone records of U.S. citizens who have not been accused of any crime

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has now written to the Department of Justice (DOJ) demanding documents related to the Hemisphere program be made public and raising 'serious concerns' about its legality.

According to the letter, Wyden received 'sensitive' information about the program from the DOJ - allowing him to view it but not share it with the wider public.

The senator said the 'troubling information' he'd learned about the program 'would justifiably outrage many Americans and other members of Congress.'

Republican congressman Andy Biggs, Ariz., accused the government of spying on Americans.

Hemisphere is 'invasive' and allows 'government agents warrantless access to trillions of Americans' domestic communications records,' he said.

Biggs went on: 'The federal government doesn’t care about your privacy and it’s long past time we end these abuses and hold rogue actors accountable.

'The Hemisphere Project highlights major loopholes in federal law through which the government is able to spy on Americans without judicial oversight, such as the purchase of personal data.'

Congress is currently considering renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's Section 702.

That allows for warrantless surveillance of foreigners but often catches the conversations of Americans.

Biggs said it must also look at the Hemisphere program.

Posted by:Skidmark

#1 Joseph Nacchio

"He claimed in court, with documentation, that his was the only company to demand legal authority for surreptitious mass surveillance demanded by the NSA"

"This defense was not admissible in court because the U.S. Department of Justice filed an in limine motion, which is often used in national security cases, to exclude information which may reveal state secrets. Information from the Classified Information Procedures Act hearings in Nacchio's case was likewise ruled inadmissible."

Posted by: Skidmark 2023-11-22 14:22

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