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09.12.06
EFF Raises A FLAG
 By David Utter
The FOIA Litigation for Accountable Government project will use Freedom of Information Act requests to expose the more egregious infringements on privacy by the federal government.
David Sobel and Marcia Hoffman, both known for their work with the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), have signed on to lead the EFF's FLAG project.
Both attorneys will be based in Washington, DC, and aggressively focus on potential government abuses of technological surveillance on ordinary Americans.
"National security and law enforcement demand some level of government secrecy, but too much can enable abuses of power," said Sobel, who will direct EFF's new project. "The NSA's illegal spying program and other recent revelations show that the government has radically expanded its surveillance of ordinary Americans, obtaining
untold access to the details of our everyday lives."
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Through the use of FOIA requests, the FLAG project can obtain information about the broadening usage of technical efforts to monitor citizens.
EFF cited Justice Department cellphone tracking without probable cause and the potential for more subpoenas of search engine databases beyond specific criminal investigations as issues.
"While the government has increased its monitoring of its citizens, it's also stepped up efforts to block public scrutiny," said Hofmann. "The public deserves to know what the government is doing, so that it can keep abuses of power in check and challenge violations of privacy."
As such information becomes available from those FOIA requests, the FLAG project would make it available to the public, media, and policymakers on Capitol Hill.
The requests will target the collection of data on citizens, cooperative efforts between the government and private sector companies, and how the government develops and uses new technology against the public.
Computer and network security professionals know how difficult it is to balance security with usability. Too much security keeps people from getting their work done.
EFF has a similar concern, that overarching federal efforts to protect the public may infringe on their rights as citizens.
About the Author:
David Utter is a business and technology writer for SecurityProNews, WebProNews, and InternetFinancialNews.
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