NSA houdt vanaf vandaag op met het bespioneren van Amerikanen

De verandering is een langverwachte overwinning voor privacy-activisten en technologiebedrijven en komt zo'n tweeënhalf jaar na de onthullingen van klokkenluider Edward Snowden. Die maakte openbaar hoe ver de bevoegdheden van de inlichtingendienst NSA reikten om mensen af te luisteren.

"The USA FREEDOM Act is the right policy approach. It protects the civil liberties of every American. It ends the federal government's bulk collection of personal data from law-abiding citizens. And at the same time it ensures that we maintain the tools that are needed to target violent terrorists and prevent acts of terror. That's why the House passed it overwhelmingly, and today the Senate passed it with a two-thirds majority. That's why I'm proud to be one of the original cosponsors of this bipartisan legislation. The USA FREEDOM Act strikes the right balance between protecting our privacy rights and our national security interests, and I am pleased that today Congress has passed this bill and is sending it to the President's desk."