WASHINGTON, July 31 (Reuters) - A White House review on Monday recommended that the FBI's ability to conduct non-national security queries under a controversial surveillance law be removed as part of reforms aimed at getting the law reauthorized.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's Section 702 permits the U.S. government to collect digital communications of foreigners located outside the United States.
"If Congress fails to reauthorize Section 702, history may judge the lapse of Section 702 authorities as one of the worst intelligence failures of our time," concluded the review, which was conducted for the White House by the president's Intelligence Advisory Board.
The review recommended that Attorney General Merrick Garland "remove FBI’s authority to conduct queries for evidence of a non-national security-related crime in its Section 702 data."
"FBI’s use of Section 702 should be limited to foreign intelligence purposes only and FBI personnel should receive additional training on what foreign intelligence entails," the review said.
Persons:
Donald Trump, Merrick Garland, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Jon, Steve Holland, Mark Porter, Deepa Babington
Organizations:
Foreign Intelligence, Republican, White, president's Intelligence, Department, FBI, Thomson
Locations:
United States