I got an email from the EFF this morning pointing out they have a new action alert at their wonderful Action Center site. I’ve written about the newly introduced JUSTICE Act and the alert provides some good, additional background material:
The new bill, called the JUSTICE Act, would add essential new checks and balances to a broad range of surveillance powers. In particular, it would reform the notorious National Security Letter power that allows the FBI, without court supervision, to secretly demand that companies hand over your private phone and Internet records.
I am thrilled by one of the bill’s other aims.
The JUSTICE Act would also repeal the immunity for telecommunications companies that illegally assisted in the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping program. This would restore the rule of law and allow EFF’s suit against AT&T to continue so that the courts can do their job and rule on the legality of the surveillance.
Run, don’t walk, to the EFF’s site, register if you haven’t already, and act by contacting your senators and ask them to support this critical reform bill.
Why do I have to register? Isn’t the EFF supposed to help protect my freedom to be anonymous on the internet? Also, where the hell is their RSS feed for these kinds of alerts?
My bad, you are right, you do not *need* to register. If you are a repeat user of the action center, though, and trust EFF’s execution of its privacy policy, both of which are true of me, then consider registering. If you do not want to forgo your anonymity, you do not need to register. You do not even need to give your personal details for the email or fax, you could copy, paste and re-use the form letter EFF provides. As long as you act, that is what is most important.