End Government Surveillance

- The Latest
  Regular reporting on government secrecy, surveillance, and the rights of reporters and whistleblowers.
  - The Classifieds
  - News Releases
- Technology
  Working open source software products to protect journalists, newsrooms, and their sources.
  - SecureDrop
  - Dangerzone
- U.S. Press Freedom Tracker
  A database of press freedom incidents in the United States.
  - Data Visualizations
  - Explore the Database
- Digital Security Education
  Digital security trainings and resources for journalists.
  - Request a Training
  - Guides & Resources
- About Us
  Protecting and defending press freedom when we need it the most.
- Our Team
  - Staff & Contributors
  - Board of Directors
- Transparency
  - Reports & Financials
  - Announcements
- Get in Touch
  - Jobs & Internships
  - Contact Us
Take action
Donate

data-brokers

Image created using Midjourney, CC BY-NC

Mass surveillance is widespread. Congress must rein in government spying powers.

In 2013, whistleblower and longtime Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) board member Edward Snowden’s stunning revelations of mass surveillance by the National Security Agency shocked the world. Since then, we’ve learned even more about the alarming scope of surveillance by the U.S. government.

Mass surveillance undermines everyone’s privacy, and it threatens press freedom by allowing the government to spy on communications between journalists and their sources.

Write a letter to Congress to stop warrantless spying on Americans

First Name * Last Name
Email Address *
Street Address * Zip Code * Enter a five digit US ZIP code

Edit this message so that it is unique to you: Dear Member of Congress, As a supporter of press freedom and your constituent, I am deeply concerned about the government’s use of Section 702 of FISA to spy on Americans’ communications without a warrant. I urge you not to reauthorize this law unless significant changes are made to rein in warrantless surveillance. Journalists and the free press are increasingly under attack in America. Now is not the time to renew Section 702, a powerful surveillance tool that has been abused in the past to target journalists, without reforms to stop its abuse. Congress should amend Section 702 to require a warrant before the government can search Americans’ communications. It should also prohibit government agencies from buying sensitive data about Americans from data brokers and other third parties that the government otherwise would require a warrant to access. These changes are bipartisan and have overwhelming popular support among Americans. To protect the free press and all Americans, I urge you not to reauthorize Section 702 without these vital reforms. URLs are not allowed in this message.

* Required. We will not share your information with third parties. Learn more

Something went wrong processing this request. Please try again later.

Opt in to email updates from Freedom of the Press Foundation

Something went wrong and your email updates subscription could not be processed. Please visit our signup page and try again.

Thank you for speaking up against warrantless surveillance of journalists and other Americans

Donate

Share this message on social media:
Join me in telling Congress not to renew spy law Section 702 of FISA without significant privacy reforms that will protect journalists and all Americans.
Call your representative and tell them not to renew Section 702 of FISA without privacy reforms

Congress is considering renewing a controversial surveillance law RIGHT NOW. Section 702 of FISA allows the FBI and other intelligence agencies to spy on Americans’ communications without a warrant. Call your lawmakers and tell them not to renew Section 702 of FISA without privacy reforms!
We’ll give you a suggestion of what to say and connect you directly with your lawmaker’s office.
Phone Number *
Enter a ten digit US phone number
ZIP code *
Enter a five digit US ZIP code

* Required. Your number will only be used for this call and will never be shared with third parties. Learn more

Something went wrong processing this request. Please try again later.

That number didn't work. This campaign requires a valid US phone number.

Opt in to email updates from Freedom of the Press Foundation

First Name *
Enter your first name
Last Name
Email Address *
Enter your email address
Calling you now...

Introduce yourself, be polite, and say:

“Hi, my name is (your name), and I am calling to oppose reauthorization of Section 702 of FISA unless Congress makes significant changes to protect Americans’ privacy.
Congress should amend Section 702 to require a warrant before the government can search Americans’ communications. It should also prohibit government agencies from buying sensitive data about Americans from data brokers that the government otherwise would require a warrant to access.
As your constituent and a supporter of press freedom, these reforms are important to me. If you care about Americans’ privacy, you should demand these basic changes before reauthorizing Section 702 of FISA.”
Scrollable region. Use arrow keys to scroll.

⚠️ If lines are busy, we may call you in a few minutes.

Donate

Email

Bluesky

X/Twitter

WhatsApp

Telegram

Reddit

LinkedIn

Facebook
Something went wrong and your email updates subscription could not be processed. Please visit our signup page and try again.

Thank you for speaking up against warrantless surveillance of journalists and other Americans.

Donate

Share this message on social media:
Join me in telling Congress not to renew spy law Section 702 of FISA without significant privacy reforms that will protect journalists and all Americans.

Featured Items

Why press protections need legislative teeth, in DOJ’s own words
PRESS Act•Article
We’ve repeatedly argued that legislation is necessary to resolve questions about when the Department of Justice media guidelines apply and to provide accountability in case of violations. So, what kind of accountability is there now?

Published May 26, 2022 Parker Higgins
Secret Justice Dept. subpoena drives home the need for a strong journalist shield law
PRESS Act•Article
With a reporter surveillance scandal of its own embroiling Biden’s Department of Justice, it’s now more important than ever for his administration to throw its weight behind passing a journalist shield law such as Senator Ron Wyden’s PRESS Act.

Published May 18, 2022 Parker Higgins
FPF, dozens of groups condemn LA County sheriff’s retaliatory statements against reporter
Arrests/Prosecutions•Article
The Los Angeles County sheriff’s public threat of retaliatory investigation into a reporter is an outrageous press freedom violation, and Freedom of the Press Foundation has joined over two dozen groups last week in a letter condemning that action.

Published May 2, 2022 Parker Higgins
Supreme Court entrenches ‘state secrets’ privilege, dealing a blow to accountability
Secrecy•Article
The Supreme Court upheld and potentially expanded its pernicious “state secrets” privilege in two opinions late last week relating to expansive government surveillance and anti-terrorism programs.

Published March 8, 2022 Parker Higgins
Understanding the new CIA mass surveillance scandal
Surveillance•Article
The CIA is operating a mass surveillance program affecting Americans entirely in secret.

Published Feb. 17, 2022 Trevor Timm
Government secrecy kills
Secrecy•Article
Even the Director of National Intelligence admits the U.S. secrecy system is horribly broken.

Published Feb. 9, 2022 Trevor Timm
Undead EARN IT Act poses newly urgent threat to press freedom
Encryption•Article
After public backlash led to a major defeat in 2020, lawmakers are now attempting to rush the anti-privacy legislation through the Senate.

Published Feb. 8, 2022 Parker Higgins
Support the NSO Group whistleblower, and others like him
Surveillance•Article
Journalists have been working incredibly hard to expose the spyware company and its authoritarian users. But let's not forget about the whistleblowers.

Published Feb. 3, 2022 Trevor Timm
‘Concerns’ raised in NSA watchdog report, but still no meaningful oversight
Surveillance•Article
Stop us if you've heard this one before: the NSA failed to follow procedural and policy requirements surrounding the use of surveillance data collected on U.S. persons, according to a new report from the group's Office of the Inspector General.

Published Feb. 3, 2022 Parker Higgins
Biden’s Justice Dept. promised to support a strong journalist shield law. So why hasn’t it?
PRESS Act•Article
Sen. Ron Wyden calls the Justice Department’s inaction on key press freedom issue “extremely frustrating, and frankly unacceptable”

Published Feb. 2, 2022 Trevor Timm