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WASHINGTON: A major US surveillance authority is set to expire on Friday midnight, deepening concerns over national security as the World Cup gets underway and Washington remains deadlocked over President Donald Trump’s intelligence leadership.
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows US spy agencies to collect communications of foreign targets overseas without a warrant, including when they contact people inside the United States.
Officials describe the programme as one of Washington’s most important counterterrorism and espionage tools, while privacy advocates and lawmakers in both parties have long warned that it can sweep up Americans’ communications without adequate safeguards.
The authority expires at midnight Friday going into Saturday after the House of Representatives and Senate both failed to pass a short-term extension on Thursday.
