Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat and a prominent member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, revealed on Wednesday that major U.S. cellphone carriers, including AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, failed to notify lawmakers about government surveillance requests. His conclusions are based on an inquiry done by his staff. They found that these companies had no meaningful measures in place to alert Senators when legal demands were received to spy on their phones.
In his letter to his Senate colleagues, Wyden highlighted that deeply troubling lack of warnings. This issue is especially egregious given the passage of protections for Senate data stored by third-party firms in 2020. These protections prompted the Senate Sergeant at Arms to update contracts requiring phone carriers to send notifications regarding surveillance requests. Surprisingly, implementation of this requirement has been hit-or-miss.
“Executive branch surveillance poses a significant threat to the Senate’s independence and the foundational principle of separation of powers,” stated Senator Wyden in his letter.
As part of his investigation, Wyden unearthed one big surprise. One of those carriers, who we don’t name, even acknowledged sharing Senate data with law enforcement, all without telling the Senate. This shocking disclosure points towards a deeper just as insidious form of surveillance and undermines our right to privacy and independence from onerous legislative control.
The Inspector General’s report, which was released recently, shed light on the Trump administration‘s clandestine activities that included obtaining logs of calls and text messages from 43 congressional staffers and two serving House lawmakers between 2017 and 2018. The report indicated that the Trump administration imposed gag orders on phone companies receiving surveillance requests, further complicating transparency.
Politico was the first to report Wyden’s letter. It shows the history, filled with pressing surveillance challenges lawmakers have still had to face each time. Second, he called on his colleagues to start moving to carriers that comply with notification requirements. Among smaller carriers, US Mobile stands out for having these provisions in place. They regularly alert congressional staffers and lawmakers on the dangers of government surveillance requests.
“The current policy is to notify customers of subpoenas or legal demands for information whenever we are legally permitted to do so,” stated Ahmed Khattak, a representative from US Mobile. “To the best of our knowledge, US Mobile has not received any surveillance requests targeting the phones of Senators or their staff.”
Just as Wyden called for answers from T-Mobile, other carriers have been similarly criticized for their policies. “We don’t want to discourage companies from responding to Sen. Wyden’s questions,” said Keith Chu, highlighting the delicate balance between corporate compliance and governmental oversight. Alex Byers from another carrier asserted, “we are complying with our obligations to the Senate Sergeant at Arms,” indicating an acknowledgment of the contractual requirements.
Senator Wyden’s findings highlight the urgent need for transparency and accountability from telecom companies in relation to government surveillance practices. As he continues to advocate for stronger protections for lawmakers, the implications of these revelations resonate beyond just privacy concerns. They touch upon fundamental democratic principles.