Following partial markup of several bills on electronic surveillance, CCIA urged the committee to reject proposals that "effectively undermine constitutional checks and balances."
"In addition to their constitutional problems, proposals that vest invisible and unrestrained surveillance power would likely facilitate improper pressure upon industry entities to be law enforcement surrogates, sacrificing customers' privacy," said CCIA President and CEO Ed Black.
CCIA said in a release that it believes that the threat of widespread, secret and unchecked surveillance of the billions of messages that flow between customers, especially U.S. citizens, will be corrosive of the fundamental openness and freedom necessary for communications networks. "The loss of a sense of privacy in personal and confidential business communications will have a long term, harmful impact on the dynamic and innovative growth of our sector of the economy," Black continued.
The letter also states that the issue has international implications. The U.S. government needs greater credibility to help shield U.S. companies from foreign surveillance practices that can result in oppression. Current efforts to broaden executive surveillance powers erode the credibility of the U.S. government on privacy matters. "This lack of U.S. leadership," said the group in its release, "undermines U.S. companies who must contend with censors, regulators and secret police in other nations."
