DOJ Seeks Greater Wiretap Capability

Welcome Guest. | Log In| Register | Membership Benefits

March 30, 1998 (3:34 PM EST)

By Mary Mosquera,

The Justice Department filed a petition Friday with the Federal Communications Commission, asking it to mandate standards for communications equipment that would make it easier for law enforcement to eavesdrop on voice or data conversations in criminal probes.

Law enforcement's duty to fight criminal activity in the digital world slams into every individual's right to privacy, much the same as in the days of analog communications before laws created specific requirements for wiretaps.

Now, Attorney General Janet Reno and FBI director Louis Freeh have proposed that industry embed digital wiretapping capability into all new telecommunications and computing equipment. That capability is centered in the routing system, which puts voice or data communications through to their destination. The petition asks for the ability to intercept communications of all parties in a conference call, not just the target person; the ability to access call-identifying information, such as phone number and destination number; and the timely delivery of caller ID information.

"These capabilities are necessary for law enforcement properly and effectively to conduct electronic surveillance," Justice said.

But the plan has its critics. Privacy advocates fear the FBI will circumvent wiretapping laws to eavesdrop on people, and communications equipment companies say the cost of embedding the capabilities into their products is too high.

FCC chairman William Kennard said the issues raised in the petition "reflect some of the most difficult public policy concerns the FCC must deal with, including public safety, personal privacy, and technological innovation."

At the heart of the debate is the Computer Assistance to Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), a 1994 law designed to preserve law enforcement's ability to carry out wiretaps over more advanced telephone networks. But the Justice Department says the technology requirements in that law are inadequate for delivering content and call identification in wiretaps, and asks the FCC to come up with new rules by Sept. 28.

Jim Dempsey, senior staff counsel for the Center for Democracy and Technology in Washington, D.C., said CALEA is supposed to preserve, but not expand, government surveillance capabilities in digital and other new services. "The FBI is trying through technology to get additional information under a lower standard," he said.