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Surveillance

The advance of technology presents both opportunities for and challenges to liberty. As new technologies are implemented, their impacts on civil liberties must be considered. The ACLU supports uses of technology that enhance privacy and freedom while opposing those that undermine liberty and move us closer to a surveillance society.
Seattle has passed the strongest surveillance transparency and accountability protections in the country!
Judge fines Tacoma Police Department for withholding public records about invasive surveillance device
Seattle City Council adopts nation’s strongest law to protect utility customer personal data
Amazon Should Stop Selling Face Surveillance Technology to the Government
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Resources

ACLU Urges Spokane City Council to Strengthen Surveillance Proposal

News Release, Published: 
Monday, July 29, 2013
The ACLU of Washington is urging that the Spokane City Council strengthen a proposal for City acquisition of surveillance equipment.
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"You Are Being Tracked": ACLU Report Finds the Government Knows Where You Are Driving

Published: 
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
A national ACLU report on license plate tracking by law enforcement confirms that the problems we identified locally are reflected in communities throughout the U.S. Our study found that few police departments in Washington place any substantial restrictions on how the location information may be used.
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Why the NSA’s gathering of metadata matters

Published: 
Monday, June 17, 2013
Goverment power that operates unchecked behind closed doors is inevitably abused. The recent disclosures about the secret NSA surveillance programs prove this maxim.
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Speech and Privacy Protections Must Keep Pace with New Technology

Published: 
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Having recently started as the new Technology and Liberty Director at the ACLU of WA, I’d like to tell you how I think about technology and some of the key issues I hope to focus on in the coming months and years.
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ACLU Urges City Council to Put Teeth into Surveillance Law, Delay Vote to Add Auditing Process

News Release, Published: 
Monday, March 18, 2013
The ACLU of Washington welcomes the proposal to establish a process for the acquisition of surveillance technology by the City of Seattle. Transparency and opportunities for public input are essential , as we have seen recently with controversies generated by the City’s acquisition of drones and  also a system of surveillance cameras and a mesh network.
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Protect privacy as Seattle Police drones take off

Published: 
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Seattle can become a national leader in establishing tight regulations for police drones. City leaders should seize the opportunity without delay.
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Eye-in-the- Sky Drones: Will Seattle Set Satisfactory Safeguards?

Published: 
Friday, May 4, 2012
A week ago, on a Friday afternoon, a reporter called us with news that the Seattle Police Department (SPD) had received permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to employ two unmanned aerial drones it had purchased. City officials declined to comment. Did the ACLU have anything to say? You bet!
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ACLU Calls for Seattle to Establish Safeguards for Police Use of Drones

News Release, Published: 
Monday, April 23, 2012
The City of Seattle needs to develop clear and transparent policies for the use of aerial drones as a tool in law enforcement, the ACLU of Washington said today. Guidelines are needed to protect personal privacy against improper use of drones and to ensure that government does not use the technology to engage in surveillance of political activity.
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Latino Civic Alliance Rejects Gang Injunction Legislation

Published: 
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
An important statewide Latino organization in Washington State has weighed in against gang injunction legislation in the state legislature. Here's what Latino Civic Alliance has to say.
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GPS Tracking: The Supreme Court Takes a Step for Privacy

Published: 
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The United States Supreme Court on Monday unanimously decided that law enforcement needs a warrant to place a GPS tracking device on a vehicle. We applaud the Supreme Court for ruling correctly that warrantless installation of a GPS device violates the Fourth Amendment.
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