NSA Legal Framework & Compliance Flashcards
6 cards from real NSA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 NSA Legal Framework & Compliance flashcards as text
What was the primary significance of the USA PATRIOT Act for NSA operations?
Answer: It significantly expanded government surveillance and data collection authorities following the September 11 attacks
The USA PATRIOT Act, passed in October 2001 following 9/11, significantly expanded government surveillance authorities, lowered legal barriers to information sharing, and broadened NSA collection capabilities.
What key change did the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 make to NSA collection programs?
Answer: It ended bulk telephone metadata collection and required targeted collection with individual FISA Court orders
The USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 ended the NSA's bulk telephone metadata collection program, requiring instead individualized FISA Court orders for targeted records requests from telephone providers.
What is the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB)?
Answer: An independent bipartisan executive branch board that reviews counterterrorism surveillance programs for legal compliance and civil liberties protection
The PCLOB is an independent bipartisan executive branch agency created from 9/11 Commission recommendations that reviews government counterterrorism programs to ensure compliance with law and protection of civil liberties.
What are NSA 'minimization procedures'?
Answer: Protocols that limit the collection, retention, use, and dissemination of information about U.S. persons
NSA minimization procedures are legally mandated protocols limiting how information about U.S. persons collected during foreign intelligence surveillance is retained, used, and disseminated.
Which congressional committees provide primary oversight of NSA activities?
Answer: Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) provide the primary congressional oversight of NSA programs, budgets, and legal authorities.
Under U.S. law, what is generally required before the NSA can conduct surveillance targeting a U.S. person?
Answer: A court order or warrant based on probable cause issued by the FISA Court
Under FISA and the Fourth Amendment, the NSA must generally obtain a FISA Court order based on probable cause before conducting electronic surveillance targeting a U.S. person for foreign intelligence purposes.