To amend section 2702 of title 18, United States Code, to prevent law enforcement and intelligence agencies from obtaining subscriber or customer records in exchange for anything of value, to address communications and records in the possession of intermediary internet service providers, and for other purposes.
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill prohibits government agencies from purchasing personal data records from data brokers without first obtaining a court order. It amends the Stored Communications Act to bar law enforcement and intelligence agencies from buying covered customer records or illegitimately obtained information from third parties. It also extends privacy obligations to intermediary service providers, restricts foreign intelligence surveillance to statutory authority, and limits civil immunity for companies assisting government surveillance without a court order.
Who Benefits and How
Individuals located in the United States and U.S. persons abroad benefit from stronger Fourth Amendment protections against warrantless government data purchases. Data subjects gain protection against government use of data obtained through deception, unauthorized access, or violation of service agreements. Privacy advocacy organizations see their policy goals advanced.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Law enforcement agencies and intelligence community elements lose the ability to purchase personal data from data brokers without court orders, increasing time and cost of investigations. Data brokers face new restrictions on selling data to government entities. Intermediary service providers face new compliance obligations prohibiting disclosure of subscriber information to government entities.
Key Provisions
- Prohibits government agencies from purchasing, obtaining, or using covered customer records from data brokers without court orders (Section 2)
- Requires courts to apply the most stringent legal standard when ordering third-party disclosure of covered records (Section 3)
- Extends privacy protections to intermediary service providers that handle communications (Section 4)
- Restricts foreign intelligence surveillance to express statutory authority and limits it to non-U.S. persons outside the U.S. (Section 5)
- Limits civil immunity for companies assisting warrantless government surveillance to 48 hours (Section 6)
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Prohibits law enforcement and intelligence agencies from purchasing subscriber records and personal data from data brokers without a court order, closing the data broker loophole that allows warrantless government surveillance.
Key Policy Areas
Privacy & Civil Liberties, Law Enforcement, Intelligence, Technology
Primary Purpose
Prohibits law enforcement and intelligence agencies from purchasing subscriber records and personal data from data brokers without a court order, closing the data broker loophole that allows warrantless government surveillance.
Policy Domains
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Limits
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- U.S. persons abroad
- Civil liberties
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Intelligence community agencies
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Civil Immunity Limitations
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Surveillance targets (can sue after 48 hours)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Communications providers assisting government
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Government Purchase of Data Broker Records
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- U.S. individuals and persons (privacy protection)
- Privacy advocacy organizations
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Law enforcement agencies
- Intelligence community
- Data brokers
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Intermediary Service Provider Privacy Obligations
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Subscribers and customers of communication services
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Intermediary service providers (CDNs, cloud infrastructure, transit providers)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
ReportedReceived
Reported from the Committee on the Judiciary
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence discharged; committed to the Committee …
Mr. Davidson (for himself, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Biggs, Ms. Lofgren, …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Government entities seeking data, Intelligence Community, Law enforcement agencies
Individuals whose data is held by third parties, Surveillance targets, U.S. persons (privacy protection)
Data brokers, Third parties holding personal data
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "federal"
- → ['Law enforcement agencies', 'Intelligence community elements', 'Federal courts']
- "private"
- → ['Data brokers', 'Third parties holding personal data']
- "private"
- → ['Intermediary service providers', 'Electronic communication service providers']
- "federal"
- → ['U.S. Government intelligence agencies']
- "private"
- → ['Communications providers assisting government surveillance']
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology