By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The FBI assured Congress that its plane surveillance program is not intended to perform mass surveillance or bulk intelligence collection, the Associated Press reports. The FBI, however, declined to answer some questions about its planes, including how often they are used and how much they cost. The briefing comes two weeks…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com In its rush to hire new Secret Service officers to handle serious security lapses, the agency placed several dozen new people in sensitive positions, even though they had not completed the required national security clearance process, the Washington Post reports, citing two unnamed government sources. Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy told…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Are Apple and Google the bad guys? A senior FBI official told a Congressional committee that the technology giants are aiding terrorists by offering users encrypted communications, a senior FBI officials told the House Homeland Security Committee, The Register reports. Michael Steinbach, assistant director in the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, said the…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Two Congressmen with computer science degrees said the FBI is making Americans vulnerable to hackers, and any suggestion otherwise is ignorant, CNN reports. U.S. Reps. Will Hurd of Texas and Ted Lieu of California are criticizing FBI Director James Comey’s insistence that cell phone companies allow a “backdoor” for the bureau…
By Bloomberg Editorial Board Many members of Congress seem to view the U.S.’s most deadly criminals — those who carry guns — as a protected class. For decades, they’ve tried everything imaginable to cripple the agency charged with enforcing federal laws against illegal gun buying, trafficking and possession. Meanwhile, advocates of stricter gun-law enforcement have fought…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Members of Congress are finding little reason to begin trusting the Secret Service again after a series of blunders and employee problems. The House Oversight and Government Reform committee discovered this week that Alvin “A.T.” Smith, who was ousted as deputy director of the agency, is still paid by the Secret…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A bipartisan group of congressional lawmakers leveled harsh claims against DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart on Wednesday, saying they had no confidence in her ability to lead the agency. The sharp words come a day after lawmakers learned that DEA agents received lax punishment for attending “sex parties” in Columbia, the Huffington…
By Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The FBI and National Security Administration are on the verge of losing surveillance powers that were gained after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Authorities for both agencies are urging lawmakers to preserve the spy powers before the expire June 1, The Guardian reports. Some members of Congress want more surveillance reforms…
