Cybertelecom Federal Internet Law & Policy An Educational Project

4th A :: Open Source & Social Media

"Open source" content is content that is publicly available.  This may also be known as an "unrestricted source." This could be a newspaper, a magazine, a flier posted on a telephone pole, or a website.  There is "no expectation of privacy" in open source content. DOJ's 1999 Guidance states

Law Enforcement agents may obtain information from publicly accessible online sources and facilities under the same conditions as they may obtain information from other sources generally open to the public. This Principle applies to publicly accessible sources located in foreign jurisdictions as well as those in the Unite States. [DOJ 1999 p viii]

Congressional Hearing

Subcommittee Hearing: DHS Monitoring of Social Networking and Media: Enhancing Intelligence Gathering and Ensuring Privacy

• Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence | 311 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 | Feb 16, 2012 10:00am On Thursday, February 16, 2012 the Committee on Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence held a hearing entitled "DHS Monitoring of Social Networking and Media: Enhancing Intelligence Gathering and Ensuring Privacy." The Committee met at 10:00 a.m. in 311 Cannon House Office Building.
• Opening Statements Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-PA), Subcommittee Chairman [full text of opening statement]
• Witnesses:
• Ms. Mary Ellen Callahan
  Chief Privacy Officer
  Department of Homeland Security
  [full text of testimony]

  Mr. Richard Chávez
  Director
  Office of Operations Coordination and Planning
  Department of Homeland Security
  [full text of testimony]

Government Activity

• United States Department of Justice “Online Investigative Principles for Federal Law Enforcement Agents,” The Online Investigations Working Group, 1999.
• United States Department of Justice, “Attorney General Guidelines for Domestic FBI Operations,” 2008.

Papers

• Orin Kerr, “The Case for the Third Party Doctrine,” Michigan Law Review, Vol. 107, 2009