PATRIOT Act
The USA PATRIOT Act broadly expands law enforcement's surveillance and investigative powers and represents one of the most significant threats to civil liberties, privacy and democratic traditions in U.S. history.
What is PATRIOT?
The USA PATRIOT Act (officially the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate
Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) was quickly developed as anti-terrorism legislation in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks. The large and complex law received little Congressional oversight and debate, and was signed into law by President Bush Oct. 26, 2001.
PATRIOT gives sweeping search and surveillance to domestic law enforcement and foreign intelligence agencies and eliminates checks and balances that previously gave courts the opportunity to ensure that those powers were not abused. PATRIOT and follow-up legislation now in development threaten the basic rights of millions of Americans.
PATRIOT Act Cases
Other Resources
- Analysis of the SAFE Act[eff.org]
- Archive of older PATRIOT and terrorism related docs[eff.org]
- Analysis of the Protecting the Rights of Individuals Act[eff.org]
- ACLU's PATRIOT page[aclu.org]
- ACLU's List of Communities Against the PATRIOT Act[aclu.org]
- EFF Analysis Of The Provisions Of The USA PATRIOT Act That Relate To Online Activities[eff.org]
- EFF review of May 20 TIA report[eff.org]
- Summary of How PATRIOT Threatens Online Civil Liberties[eff.org]
- Security and Freedom Ensured Act of 2003 (SAFE Act)[eff.org]
- PATRIOT Act Bills[eff.org]
- EPIC's PATRIOT page[epic.org]
- Sunset Provisions Analysis[eff.org]
Deeplinks Posts
- March 15, 2007 PATRIOT Act Apologist Site Didn't Get the Memo
- March 09, 2007 EFF Calls For Aggressive Congressional Hearings on National Security Letter Misuse
- October 04, 2006 Federal Judge Refuses to Dismiss PATRIOT Act Case (Finally!)
- March 13, 2006 PATRIOT Renewal Rubber Stamped, NSA Spying May Be Next
- February 03, 2006 Final PATRIOT Showdown Deferred As NSA Hearings Loom
- January 06, 2006 Illegal NSA Wiretapping Program Involved Data-Mining
- December 22, 2005 Congress (Finally) Agrees on PATRIOT Extension Deal
- December 22, 2005 House Votes to Extend PATRIOT one month (updated: five weeks)
Press Releases
- April 15, 2008 EFF Report: FBI Slowed Terror Investigation with Improper NSL Request
- March 20, 2008 EFF Urges Court to Rule National Security Letters Unconstitutional
- March 09, 2007 EFF Calls For Aggressive Congressional Hearings on National Security Letter Misuse
- August 04, 2005 FBI
- May 20, 2005 EFF Obtains Draft PATRIOT Bill
- January 14, 2005 Can the FBI Monitor Your Web Browsing Without a Warrant?
- September 29, 2004 Court Strikes Down Key USA PATRIOT Power
- January 26, 2004 Federal Judge Rules That Part of the USA PATRIOT Act Is Unconstitutional
