NSA Upstream Surveillance

Record	OBS-0502
Category	Government/Surveillance
Status	PARTIALLY SUBSTANTIATED
Summary	The NSA's Upstream surveillance program involves bulk interception and searching of Americans' international Internet communications as they travel across the Internet backbone. Proponents claim this is done without warrants and violates constitutional rights. The program was revealed by Edward Snowden in 2013.
Origin	First disclosed in June 2013 as part of the Snowden revelations, with subsequent legal challenges and public debate.
Claimed	The NSA intercepts and searches the contents of Americans' international emails, chats, and web-browsing traffic without a warrant. The surveillance is conducted with the compelled assistance of telecommunications companies like AT&T and Verizon. The NSA searches communications for 'selectors' (keywords) and can target any foreigner abroad, including journalists and human rights researchers. The program is authorized under Section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act, but critics argue it exceeds statutory authority and violates the Fourth Amendment.
Evidence / consensus	Government documents and whistleblower disclosures confirm the existence of Upstream surveillance. Legal experts and courts have raised concerns about its constitutionality, but the program has been upheld in some courts while challenged in others.

> OBSERVER NOTE:
Recorded as a documented surveillance program with legal controversy. The ACLU and EFF have filed lawsuits, but the program continues under reauthorizations.

Sources

Unprecedented and Unlawful: The NSA's 'Upstream' Surveillance | American Civil Liberties Union
Unprecedented And Unlawful: The NSA's 'Upstream' Surveillance - Media Coverage - Stanford Law School
Trying to Keep the Internet Safe From Warrantless NSA Surveillance - ACLU of Tennessee
Upstream vs. PRISM | Electronic Frontier Foundation

Sources are external and provided for verification. Listing does not imply the Observer endorses their claims.