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NSA Spying

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On June 5, 2013, Edward Snowden leaked information to media outlets that proved that the NSA was spying on U.S. citizens by requiring service providers to hand over phone records. It later came out that the government was spying on world leaders and other important political figures from other countries. Then people learned about XKeyscore, a program that tracks keystrokes and almost everything else done on the internet. All of this was being done without citizens consent or knowledge, which was soon deemed unconstitutional and illegal. In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, the government spies on its citizens through tv screens in every home, hidden microphones, and secret police. As outlandish as these things seem, it isn’t as impossible as …show more content…

government spying on its citizens is unconstitutional and illegal. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, “Bush signed a presidential order in 2002 allowing the National Security Agency to monitor without a warrant the international (and sometimes domestic) telephone calls and e-mail messages of hundreds or thousands of citizens and legal residents inside the United States… but no requirement that warrants be obtained from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court as the 4th Amendment to the Constitution and the foreign intelligence surveillance laws require. In other words, no independent review or judicial oversight. That kind of surveillance is illegal. Period” (“NSA Spying on Americans is Illegal” np). The fourth amendment clearly states: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause” (“NSA Spying on Americans is Illegal” np). This means that people’s houses or personal belongings cannot be searched without a court order or probable cause, deeming spying by the government unconstitutional. Adding to this, there are three laws that explicitly state that it is illegal to spy on people, one of them being under title 50 saying “A person is guilty of an offense if he intentionally engages in electronic surveillance under color of law except as authorized by statute” (“NSA Spying on Americans is …show more content…

In 1984, the population is controlled and monitored almost entirely through technology. There are screens in almost every home, hidden microphones, and secret police. The power of this government is extensive. They can limit vocabulary and erase events in history by destroying documents. The U.S. government may not seem like it is capable of this, but in this day and age, everyone has smartphones and computers that can act as cameras and microphones. “Privacy advocates have challenged the legality of the program in court, and one Judge deemed the program unconstitutional and "almost Orwellian," while another one ruled it legal” (Franceschi-Bicchierai np). The world in 1984 is very uniform and drab. If someone is to show the slightest sign of a thought that goes against the government, they are taken and tortured until they are loyal citizens again. This creates an environment of people who are all the same and think the same. Without difference of opinion in the U.S., there would be no progress, debate, or opportunities to learn. There wouldn’t even be a need for a presidential election. No change equals no

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According to the BBC, it has become known that the NSA was responsible in the massive surveillance of millions of ordinary Americans through the PRISM progra,, not just those who have suspected links to terrorism. Companies such as Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo routinely provided a back door for the NSA to tap into their servers and track online communications (Document 1). This article was released about two years after the leaks when the debates over the future of the PATRIOT Act started to intensify. The National Security Agency strong armed these firms into giving up clients’ private data. No one stood in their way because the NSA had the full backing of the blinded Congress.

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A few years ago Edward Snowden released powerpoint slides with NSA secrets revealing the Prism program that monitors US communications.

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The fourth amendment can be beneficial but, it can also to some U.S. citizens be invasion of privacy. The fourth amendment states “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated,” some U.S. citizens believe that Law Enforcement, the Government and the NSA are violating the required guidelines of the Fourth Amendment. The NSA is conducted a mass U.S. surveillance not to believe specific individuals may be engaging in terrorist activity, but instead to believe all of us may be engaging in such activity. The government mass surveillance proves that U.S. citizens are considered suspects at all times. With the Patriot Act the NSA has access to

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It’s very similar to our phones. The government is able to track what we’re saying on our phones. When you say something that they 3 don’t like it can put you on a list so you’ll be watched more closely than others. Our phone calls can be easily accessed as well. Even though the privacy issue is way more severe in the book 1984, it doesn’t mean that ours is not a relevant issue.

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However, the government could be trying to find a terrorist, for example, and be searching phones and/or emails. Furthermore, the Fourth Amendment guarantees people the right to privacy, makes American Citizens feel safe, and precludes worry about

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Many people might say that the privacy of modern day American citizens is being violated, that to similar to the world of 1984. The novel 1984 written by George Orwell is about a totalitarian government who oppresses its people and controls all aspects of their lives. The government is symbolized by Big Brother, people are monitored their entire day for flaws in their thinking towards Big Brother. I believe that privacy of American citizens is being violated and that people should not give up aspects of their personal privacy for greater good of society.

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