I recall that the Patriot act changed the rules and There was a scandal over it and everyone seems to have forgotten. Here is a link to the most recent amendments.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/R40138.pdf
The expanded authorities prompted concerns regarding the appropriate balance between national
security interests and civil liberties. Perhaps in response to such concerns, Congress established
sunset provisions which apply to three of the most controversial amendments to FISA. These
amendments include
• Section 6001(a) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act
(IRTPA), also known as the “lone wolf” provision, which simplifies the
evidentiary showing needed to obtain a FISA court order to target non-U.S.
persons who engage in international terrorism or activities in preparation
therefor, specifically by authorizing such orders in the absence of a proven link
between a targeted individual and a foreign power;8
• Section 206 of the USA PATRIOT Act, which permits multipoint, or “roving,”
wiretaps (i.e., wiretaps which may follow a target even when he or she changes
phones) by adding flexibility to the manner in which the subject of a FISA court
order is specified;9 and
1
• Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act, which broadens the types of records and
other tangible things that can be made accessible to the government under
FISA.10
These amendments had been scheduled to expire on May 27, 2011.11 However, on the day before
they were set to expire,
This is a link to information about the FISA Act of 1978 that established the FISA court
https://www.fas.org/irp/agency/doj/fisa/
Info on the Patriot Act
http://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/highlights.htm
This is what the ACLU has to say about it (Damn chilling)
http://www.aclu.org/reform-patriot-act
•Section 215 of the Patriot Act authorizes the government to obtain "any tangible thing" relevant to a terrorism investigation, even if there is no showing that the "thing" pertains to suspected terrorists or terrorist activities. This provision is contrary to traditional notions of search and seizure, which require the government to show reasonable suspicion or probable cause before undertaking an investigation that infringes upon a person's privacy. Congress must ensure that things collected with this power have a meaningful nexus to suspected terrorist activity or it should be allowed to expire.
•Section 206 of the Patriot Act, also known as "roving John Doe wiretap" provision, permits the government to obtain intelligence surveillance orders that identify neither the person nor the facility to be tapped. This provision is contrary to traditional notions of search and seizure, which require government to state with particularity what it seeks to search or seize. Section 206 should be amended to mirror similar and longstanding criminal laws that permit roving wiretaps, but require the naming of a specific target. Otherwise, it should expire.
•Section 6001 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, or the so-called "Lone Wolf" provision, permits secret intelligence surveillance of non-US persons who are not affiliated with a foreign organization. Such an authorization, granted only in secret courts is subject to abuse and threatens our longtime understandings of the limits of the government's investigatory powers within the borders of the United States. This provision has never been used and should be allowed to expire outright.
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