Cell Phone Location Tracking Program Shows Need for Immediate NSA Reform

Today, the Washington Post reported that the National Security Agency (NSA) is tracking cell phone location information on a massive scale, based on documents from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. In response to these last NSA surveillance revelations, the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) released the following statement:

“Location information can be incredibly revealing. It shows with whom you associate, where you live, the places you visit, and your movements throughout the day. It can also show if you attended a political protest or visited a medical clinic. Cell phone location tracking has profound implications on privacy and potential chilling effects on the right to association,” said Greg Nojeim, Director of CDT’s Project on Freedom, Security and Technology.

“The latest revelations about the NSA collecting billions of cell phone location records a day is beyond troubling. It’s clear the very personal location records of innocent people, including American citizens, are being collected and analyzed in previously unimaginable ways and on a massive scale. It’s time for Congress to finally act to rein in NSA surveillance. Passing the USA FREEDOM Act would be a strong step,” he added.