Those National Security Letters (NSLs), the ones that allow law enforcement agencies to get the release of information, such as communications or business records, without a court order, are back in the news again. The American Civil Liberties Union is accusing the FBI of using the letters to get information on private citizens and giving the information to the Department of Defense.

According to the ACLU, they obtained the information through the Freedom of Information Act, and have asked the Department of Justice Inspector General Glenn Fine to launch an investigation. They state that if the DOD did in fact get the information in this manner, it constitutes sidestepping the law, and in doing so they obtained private information that they are not entitled to have. This would be in violation of the limits that Congress put in place of what the DOD could get from the letters.

The NSLs have been a subject of controversy ever since their inception since they have no judicial process and they also contain a gag order forbidding the person served with the letter from making any statements. They were originally created back in 1978, and their intended use was limited to foreign nationals or foreign powers, but the Patriot Act expanded their powers and allowed them to be used against U.S. residents who are not necessarily the subject of any kind of criminal investigation. The FBI can use the letters to get information on anyone, but the DOD is not supposed to be able to have access to that information.

Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) has introduced a bill in the House of Representatives and Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI) has done the same in the Senate. Both have the same name, the “National Security Letter Reform Act.” If passed, they will greatly restrict the use of the NSLs.

The question arises as to where the line between National Security stops and the privacy rights of American citizens begins. How do they determine whose records they obtain? It sure isn’t because someone is a criminal, or is even suspected of criminal activity. If they are looking at a certain company that you may have done business with, they have the power to get any information on you that they want and you will never know it. In certain circumstances, the National Security Letters can be a useful tool, but as with anything that is abused, they can do more harm than good. The courts are there for a purpose. They are the checks and balances that assure that any agency does not overstep their bounds. Without them, our lives are an open book to anyone and who knows where it could lead.

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