FISA Renewal ‘Critical’ for National Defense, Officials Say but Critics Demand More Privacy Safeguards

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) allows the United States’ 18 federal intelligence agencies to spy without a warrant on non-Americans overseas but many in Congress—especially Republicans—say the measure, adopted after the 9/11 attacks, has been abused and needs to be revised.
FISA’s Section 702 must be reauthorized by Congress every five years before it “sunsets,” or expires. Its latest renewal is before the end of 2023.
Among proposals to ensure private data on U.S. citizens is not collected through Section 702 and made available to government agencies, such as the FBI or IRS, is to require a probable cause finding before opening an investigation or to install a warrant requirement into its process….}