Monthly Archives: March 2015

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Wikimedia and other organizations, ranging from the liberal Human Rights Watch to the conservative Rutherford Institute, against the National Security Agency (NSA) challenging the government's mass surveillance program.

The lawsuit centers on the NSA's controversial practice of "upstream surveillance," which is the capturing of broadly interpreted "foreign intelligence information" from non-U.S. citizens, as authorized by the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (FAA). According to a Wikimedia blog post, the program casts a wide net and "as a result, captures communications that are not connected to any 'target,' or may be entirely domestic. This includes communications by our users and staff."

"Upstream surveillance" was first revealed by Edward Snowden, a former NSA analyst. The ACLU's lawsuit accuses the NSA and other government organizations of violating the First Amendment, which protects speech, and the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unlawful search and seizure. Below is the ACLU's description of "upstream":

The NSA intercepts and copies private communications in bulk while they are in transit, and then searches their contents using tens of thousands of keywords associated with NSA targets. These targets, chosen by intelligence analysts, are never approved by any court, and the limitations that do exist are weak and riddled with exceptions. Under the FAA, the NSA may target any foreigner outside the United States believed likely to communicate "foreign intelligence information" -- a pool of potential targets so broad that it encompasses journalists, academic researchers, corporations, aid workers, business persons, and others who are not suspected of any wrongdoing.

Wikimedia founder Jimmy Wales and executive director Lila Tretikov wrote in a New York Times opinion piece that they are standing up for the privacy rights of Wikipedia's 75,000-plus contributors -- many of whom wish to remain anonymous as they edit or write about topics that may be controversial where they live.

"These volunteers should be able to do their work without having to worry that the United States government is monitoring what they read and write," they said, later adding that "as a result [of upstream surveillance], whenever someone overseas views or edits a Wikipedia page, it's likely that the N.S.A. is tracking that activity -- including the content of what was read or typed, as well as other information that can be linked to the person's physical location and possible identity. These activities are sensitive and private: They can reveal everything from a person's political and religious beliefs to sexual orientation and medical conditions."

Wales and Tretikov added, "We are asking the court to order an end to the NSA's dragnet surveillance of internet traffic."

The U.S. Supreme Court denied the ACLU's 2013 challenge to the FAA because it said the lawsuit's parties (namely Amnesty International) lacked proof they had been spied on. The ACLU and Wikimedia believe this new case against the government will succeed because one of Snowden's leaked disclosures included a classified NSA slide that specifically referred to Wikipedia.

ACLU attorney Patrick Toomey told Politico that it was also relevant that "the plaintiffs in this case engage in hundreds of billions of international communications each year," and that it's "inconceivable that the NSA isn't copying and searching through."

Other defendants include NSA director Michael Rogers, National Intelligence director James Clapper and Attorney General Eric Holder. Wikimedia's partners in the lawsuit include The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International USA, Pen American Center, Global Fund for Women, The Nation Magazine, The Rutherford Institute, and Washington Office on Latin America.

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Wikimedia vs NSA: ACLU Files Lawsuit to End Spy Agency's 'Upstream Surveillance'

A collection of civil-liberties and free-speech advocates, including the popular Wikipedia site, announced Tuesday they are suing the National Security Agency over its broad surveillance of U.S. Internet traffic, in part based on information gleaned from NSA leaker Edward Snowden.

The lawsuit a second attempt by some of the plaintiffs comes as both public and Congressional opinion is turning against federal surveillance programs authorized under the Patriot Act.

Were filing suit today on behalf of our readers and editors everywhere, said Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia.

SEE ALSO: FBI surveillance tactics jeopardized by fight over NSA phone snooping program

Surveillance erodes the original promise of the internet: an open space for collaboration and experimentation, and a place free from fear, he said in a statement announcing the lawsuit.

The nine plaintiffs include the Wikimedia Foundation and Amnesty International, and are being represented by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The suit claims that the NSAs surveillance is violating citizens constitutional rights, and asks the court to put an end to the program. The Justice Department is also named as a defendant for crafting the legal authorization for domestic spying.

SEE ALSO: Mike Rogers, NSA chief, says Edward Snowdens revelations hurt counterterrorism capabilities

Dubbed upstream surveillance, the NSAs use of such programs reduces the likelihood that clients, users, journalists, witnesses, experts, civil society organizations, foreign government officials, victims of human rights abuses and other individuals will share sensitive information, the lawsuit says.

Representatives for the NSA did not respond to reporters request for comment Tuesday. A Justice Department spokesman told The Washington Times that the agency is currently reviewing the complaint.

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Wikipedia suing NSA over Internet spying

The U.S. National Security Agency was sued on Tuesday by Wikimedia and other groups challenging one of its mass surveillance programs that they said violates Americans' privacy and makes individuals worldwide less likely to share sensitive information.

The lawsuit filed in federal court in Maryland, where the spy agency is based, said the NSA is violating U.S. constitutional protections and the law by tapping into high-capacity cables, switches and routers that move Internet traffic through the United States.

The case is a new potential legal front for privacy advocates who have challenged U.S. spying programs several times since 2013, when documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed the long reach of government surveillance.

Other lawsuits have challenged the bulk collection of telephone metadata and are pending in U.S. appeals courts.

The litigation announced on Tuesday takes on what is often called "upstream" collection because it happens along the so-called backbone of the Internet and away from individual users.

Bulk collection there violates the constitution's First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech and association, and the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unreasonable search and seizure, the lawsuit said.

The plaintiffs include the Wikimedia Foundation, which runs the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, the conservative Rutherford Institute, Amnesty International USA and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, among other groups.

The groups said in the lawsuit that upstream surveillance "reduces the likelihood" that clients, journalists, foreign government officials, victims of human rights abuses and other individuals will share sensitive information with them.

Legal standing, which requires the organizations to show individual, particular harm, is the most significant obstacle for them, said Stephen Vladeck, a professor at American University Washington College of Law.

While it might stand to reason that the plaintiffs' communications are being intercepted, they can only use legally public information, which the government has acknowledged or declassified, to show harm, Vladeck said. It is "not beyond the pale" that the government could make more information public while the lawsuit is pending, he said. For now, the lawsuit is a "longshot" according to Vladeck.

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Wikimedia sues NSA over mass surveillance