US Senate Rejects Proposal to Allow FBI Access to Web Searches Without Court Orders

On Wednesday the US Senate repudiated a measure that would grant the FBI access to an individuals ‘Web’ activities, such as Internet browsing history and email information, without a sanctioned court order in regards to terrorism and spy cases.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain and Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr both endorsed this potential bill that would have seen the FBI given even greater powers.

Arguing that such a bill is necessary in light of the Orlando terrorist attack, McCain and Burr advocated that unless additional security measures are implemented attacks similar to the attack at the Pulse club would most likely occur again.

The terrorist attack at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando was conducted by a supposed ;lone’ wolf who later claimed to support the Islamic State ideology. Over 49 people were killed during the shooting and over 50 were injured.

McCain and Burr highlight this attack as a paradigm, a reason why the FBI should be given more resources and capabilities to deny the chances for additional attacks from occurring.

However, out of the fear of government intrusion and the loss of privacy rights, the bill did not succeed in getting passed. It fell short of 60 votes, receiving nearly 58 of them.

Lawmakers have attempted to pass a similar measure this year in the House that would have given authorities the ability to access email information, but it also faced harsh criticism from proponents of privacy.

FBI Director James Comey has said that the number one priority of the bureau is to be able to obtain a user’s complete internet data because in not be able to do so, it “affects out work in a very, very big and practical way.”

While many would agree that the FBI would be able to do their job easier with such a bill, it is unsettling for the many American citizens who view this as yet another attempt by the government to have access to private information. People are worried that they could be targeted by the government without probable cause, thus acquiescing their rights on a grand scale.

Opponents of this bill in the Senate argue that this bill is unnecessary and stems down to the “FBI not wanting to do paperwork.” Senator Ron Wyden, one of the most prolific advocates of privacy rights in the Senate, mentioned that the FBI “has the power to demand these electronic records with a court order” and that they could, in the event of an emergency, bypass this court order requirement.

Organizations like the ACLU, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google oppose such bills and has voiced opposition to them in the past. The ACLU took aim specifically at the “lone wolf” surveillance section of the bill, saying that lone wolf surveillance “is unnecessary to provide the government the tools necessary to prevent terrorism.”

Concerned with the potential to destroy all reforms made to the Patriot Act last year, the ACLU stands firmly against this bill and has been lobbying members of Congress to fight against them as well.

Faced with such opposition, McCain and Burr will need to go back to the drawing board and formulate a way to successfully get a similar bill passed. However, with the nervous atmosphere in regards to privacy in the United States, it seems unlikely that any type of bill that relinquishes privacy rights will be ratified any time soon.

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