CIA Still Acting Like A Domestic Surveillance Agency, Despite Instructions Otherwise

from the the-only-way-to-make-this-country-safe-is-to-watch-its-citizens-as-much-as-possi dept

The ACLU has received another document dump from the government as a result of its FOIA lawsuits, with this bundle dealing with the CIA's activities. This isn't directly related to the late Friday evening doc dump announced by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which dealt more with the CIA's counterterrorism activities leading up to the 9/11 attacks, but there is some overlap.

Most of what the ACLU is highlighting from this pile of documents is the CIA's domestic surveillance activities. Ideally -- and according to the agency's own directives -- the amount of domestic surveillance it should be performing is almost none at all. It is charged with collecting and disseminating foreign intelligence and counterintelligence. It is allowed to track certain activities of Americans abroad, but for the most part, it is not supposed to be a domestic surveillance agency.

Despite this, the CIA has done so repeatedly. Back in the 70s, the Church Committee uncovered domestic surveillance by the agency, targeting anti-war activists and political dissenters, as well as multiple joint programs with the FBI that -- over the course of thirty years -- resulted in the interception and opening of millions of pieces of US first class mail.

Under Executive Order 120333, the CIA's domestic powers have expanded. No one knows to what extent the CIA performs domestic surveillance thanks to heavy redactions, but it appears to be just as widespread today, thanks mainly to its connection at the FISA Court: the FBI.

Although EO 12333, AR 2-2, and Annex B prohibit the agency from engaging in electronic surveillance within the United States, the CIA can nevertheless ask the FBI to do its bidding:

By partnering with the FBI, the CIA has done things like collect Americans' financial records in bulk under Section 215. A just-released Annex hints at other surveillance powers as well:
Annex B explains that the CIA may "use a monitoring device within the United States under circumstances in which a warrant would not be required for law enforcement purposes if the CIA General Counsel concurs."
Unfortunately, other details have been redacted, so it's not clear exactly what sort of "monitoring devices" the CIA is using. It appears to believe that -- despite its foreign priorities -- it can engage in any sort of warrantless domestic surveillance US law enforcement agencies can.

And it appears its domestic activities aren't all that limited. The ACLU has obtained Inspector General's reports that detail the extent of the CIA's US-focused spying activities. The heading "Intelligence Activities Conducted by CIA within the United States" is followed by "dozens" of redacted pages.

So, lots of bad news for privacy and civil liberties enthusiasts, with presumably more to come once some of this heavy redaction is cleared away. On the bright side, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board is moving towards tackling the CIA's activities under Executive Order 120333. While this may not result in sweeping changes to the agency's programs, it should at least provide more insight into its domestic activities.

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Filed Under: cia, domestic surveillance, surveillance


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  • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    LOYL AMERCAIN, 17 Jun 2015 @ 1:52pm

    NOT TROO! MORE RUSSIA PROPAGANDING TEH INTERNETS! HOW ARE YOU KNOWING IS TROO. YOU ARE ASKING KARL K AS IN KARL MARX BODE, YES?

    ANOTEHR SQUIRRELOUS ATTACK ON CIA.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 17 Jun 2015 @ 1:56pm

    What a low quality job.

    It must be embarrassing to work for the cia.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    PRMan, 17 Jun 2015 @ 2:37pm

    Reminds me of Order 66

    Reminds me of Order 66 in Star Wars

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Bamboo Harvester (profile), 17 Jun 2015 @ 2:41pm

    Why is anyone surprised?

    There's NO penalty that can be applied against any US Intelligence (or other) service. None. Zip. Zero. Nada.

    What disincentive do they have to NOT continue business as usual?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      DigDug, 17 Jun 2015 @ 8:51pm

      Re: Why is anyone surprised?

      Actually there is, it's called citizen's arrest, and if the "authorities" won't do anything, there's the continental congress that can tear down the existing government and replace it, all perfectly legal.

      The fact that these alphabet agency ass-clowns think they can get away with anything makes a mockery of the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

      Bet they'll be looking like deer caught in the headlights when they're facing the firing squad for their treasonous and traitorous actions against the people of this country who actually hold the power over the Government - not the other way around.

      Without the people's consent, the government has no power, no meaning, no justification for their actions or existence.

      Now all we have to wait for is for the remainder of U.S. Citizens to step up and take away the power that they've greedily claimed to have.

      When millions of people stand up to be heard, the puny 535 members of the house and senate, the president and vice president, that think they run the government will be running, scared shitless.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        GEMont, 19 Jun 2015 @ 12:31am

        Re: Re: Why is anyone surprised?

        "The fact that these alphabet agency ass-clowns think they can get away with anything makes a mockery of the Constitution and Bill of Rights."

        Actually, there's a really good chance that the mockery was made directly after 9/11, when the Constitution and the Bill of Rights were rewritten by the men and women who are now "acting as if they can get away with anything" - because they probably can get away with anything according to the new secretly re-interpreted Constitution and Bill of Rights.

        In fact, the solutions you mentioned - citizens arrest, continental congress - may now be illegal, according to the new secretly re-interpreted Constitution and Bill of Rights.

        It may now be legally considered as an act of "terrorism" to publicly mention either of these once-upon-a-time public solutions to criminal government in concert with words that describe government overthrow.

        That means that should you speak publicly about these solutions they can just arrest and detain you without a warrant and without charge, and keep you locked up for as long as they want without having to tell anyone where you went or why.

        Secretly re-interpreting the Constitution of the United States after 9/11 "because Terrorists", is how they made Extraordinary Rendition of American citizens legal.

        It is not a far stretch to imagine that same secret re-interpretation making the continental congress illegal.

        ---

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    sigalrm (profile), 17 Jun 2015 @ 4:29pm

    "Oversight" - You keep using that word...

    I do not think that it means what you think that it means...
    o·ver·sight
    noun
    noun: oversight; plural noun: oversights

    1.an unintentional failure to notice or do something.

    examples:
    "he said his failure to pay for the tickets was an oversight"

    "The oversight board failed to maintain effective control over a rogue government agency."

    synonyms: mistake, error, omission, lapse, slip, blunder;

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      GEMont, 19 Jun 2015 @ 12:09am

      Re: "Oversight" - You keep using that word...

      Beautiful.

      The Oversight Board is thus doing its job perfectly.

      I suppose we would have caught on quicker if they'd named it the Blunder Board.

      Thanks.

      ---

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 17 Jun 2015 @ 5:46pm

    NSA, FBI, CIA. If we combined the three into one agency it would save a bundle of hard earned taxpayer dollars. We could then name the new agency Stasi.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Phil Dennany, 18 Jun 2015 @ 9:41am

      Re: Combined into one agency

      Combined but only after significant downsizing and reduced powers where none are above our Constitutional laws.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    GEMont, 18 Jun 2015 @ 1:21pm

    Lets all sing: Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...

    "While this may not result in sweeping changes to the agency's programs, it should at least provide more insight into its domestic activities."

    Is it just me, or did that sound like:

    Nothing will change and the Spy-guys will continue to escalate their snoop and scoop programs year after year, but at least there is some possibility that we may learn a little about how prevalent their spying is and has been for the last fifty years and possibly even discover a little bit about how much of our daily lives' details now reside in their "crime prediction" computers.

    Oh joy!

    ---

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    geral, 25 Jun 2015 @ 2:05pm

    fbi,cia invite next attack on USA

    Outside the box :

    http://www.sosbeevfbi.com/part4-worldinabo.html

    .. and what was the fbi doing before, during and after the 911 attack?

    http://sosbeevfbi.com/911caneasilyrevi.html





    to me










    Preface:

    The fbi generally seeks to frighten, harass, abuse, assault, terrorize, bankrupt, libel, torture, force suicide, assassinate, imprison, or just kill the Target of fbi’s illegal probes.


    See my reports on the topic of gross abuses by the fbi/police community here:

    https://ttu.academia.edu/geralsosbee

    The United States of America has lost its human decency; all branches and all departments of government and with the complete complacency of the ruling class have become criminals or unethical supporters of the sociopathic thugs in power. Doctors maim or harm patients and falsify medical charts (often when fbi so orders), lawyers sell out their clients (often fearing fbi reprisal) or exploit their adversaries beyond measure, judges are anything but impartial, bankers rob their customers while engaging in wall street insider crimes, corrupt legislators enact oppressive laws for lobbyists, the SCOTUS rules that police may murder innocent suspects fleeing in their cars, merchants exercise extreme profiteering wherever they can get away with it at the expense of customers, and cops/fbi….

    …cops/fbi are robbers, torturers and murderers:

    http://la.indymedia.org/news/2015/06/268594.php

    Spanish:

    http://barcelona.indymedia.org/newswire/display/497719/index.php

    criminally macabre USA:

    http://www.indymedia.org.nz/articles/3758

    Spanish:

    http://venezuela.indymedia.org/es/2015/06/34969 .shtml

    For more specific data in support of the above report see "My Story In Detail" in twenty (20) parts starting here:

    http://sosbeevfbi.com/mystory.html

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 Jul 2015 @ 10:47pm

    cancel the 1947 nsa act that created this unethical and immoral dept

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Walter, 24 Nov 2015 @ 6:03pm

    Still?

    What do you mean "still". Of course they are still doing it. THey work for the capitalist ruling billionaire class. Only Marxism-Leninism and proletarian revolution can end it

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Pet Goat, 1 Jun 2018 @ 3:10pm

    Donkey & Elephant = Black & Green Rust EVIL Aluminum Core Penny

    BUSH IS A MASS MURDERER

    THE ACLU IS A COMPLETE FARSE

    NO ONE IS INVESTIGATING THE FBI AND CIA JOINT CRIMES

    NO ONE IS PROTECTING LIBERTY & LAW FROM THE NSA

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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