The Continuing Myth about USA Freedom Transparency
Published October 3, 2014 | By #emptywheel
▻http://www.emptywheel.net/2014/10/03/the-continuing-myth-about-usa-freedom-transparency
Summary: This is a response to an Elizabeth Goitein claim that USA Freedom would provide detailed reporting on #FISA programs. That’s false. As I show below, the only three kinds of collection for which reasonably real numbers will be reported are Individual FISA orders, NSLs (though FBI refuses to count those accurately), and the new CDR provision (though it will be presented as foreign collection even though it will be domestic). On everything else, the reporting will be excepted away beyond usefulness. Further, both PRTT and traditional 215 will likely get reported only as “fewer than 500,” a significant regression from current reporting.