1、1 See, for instance, Vernon Loeb, “Critics Questioning NSA Reading Habits,” Washington Post,November 13, 1999, p. A3; James Bamford, “Loud and Clear: the most secret of secret agenciesoperates under outdated laws,” Washington Post, November 14, 1999, p. B1; Jeffrey Richelson,“Desperately Seeking Sig
2、nals,” Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, March 2000.Congressional Research Service The Library of CongressCRS Report for CongressReceived through the CRS WebOrder Code RS20444Updated March 2, 2000Project Echelon: U.S. Electronic Surveillance EffortsRichard A. Best, Jr.Specialist in National DefenseFore
3、ign Affairs, Defense, and Trade DivisionSummaryLast year Congress passed legislation (P.L. 106-120, Section 309) requiring that theExecutive Branch report on the legal standards for electronic surveillance by U.S.intelligence agencies. This action followed press reports and European Parliament studi
4、esclaiming that the National Security Agency (NSA) has established a world-wide signalscollection effort, known as Project Echelon, that jeopardizes the privacy rights ofindividuals and unfairly provides commercial advantage to U.S. firms, There has beenno official U.S. confirmation of the existence