Press freedom group asks US lawmakers for transparency over alleged VPN surveillance

Date:
Tue, 14 Apr 2026 16:41:37 +0000

Description:
Press freedom advocates are demanding urgent answers from US lawmakers after revelations that using a VPN might strip American citizens of their constitutional rights. Here's why the Freedom of the Press Foundation wants immediate limits on warrantless spy powers.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member
features. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting
your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Join the club Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards. Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Press freedom group calls for transparency on how authorities monitor VPN It follows warning Americans using a VPN may be treated as foreign targets Advocates urge Congress to pass the Government Surveillance Reform Act The push for answers regarding warrantless government surveillance of virtual private networks (VPNs) is gaining crucial momentum. Press freedom advocates are now publicly demanding transparency from US lawmakers over how intelligence agencies monitor the traffic of citizens trying to protect their digital privacy.

The Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) has stepped into the fray, warning that millions of Americans, as well as journalists relying on the best VPN to protect sources and bypass censorship, could be inadvertently swept up in foreign spying operations. The urgent call to action follows recent revelations that the US intelligence community may be targeting citizens who use commercial privacy tools. In March, six Democratic lawmakers wrote to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, questioning whether the use of a VPN strips Americans of their constitutional privacy protections. You
may like Using a VPN may turn Americans into targets of 'warrantless' surveillance, lawmakers warn Australia 'Swiss cheese-like age verification' may lead to a VPN ban, and digital safety is at risk Millions of Iranians could lose access to VPNs 'as of next week' due to lack of US funding

Under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and Executive Order 12333, intelligence agencies have sweeping authority to monitor foreign communications without a warrant.

However, because a VPN routes traffic to a remote location before connecting to the web, a user's true location is hidden. As the lawmakers letter highlighted, the government takes the position that data of unknown origin should be treated as foreign and is therefore "subject to few privacy protections". A threat to press freedom For the FPF, this default assumption that unknown traffic belongs to a non-US person is a massive red flag. By treating all VPN users as "foreign," the government could be exposing Americans to unchecked monitoring.

"Journalists use virtual private networks every day to bypass censorship, to protect their location information, and to defend their traffic against network eavesdropping," noted FPF's Deputy Director of Digital Security, Dr. Martin Shelton, and FPF's Senior Adviser and Advocacy, Caitlin Vogus, in a blog post.

"And not just journalists, VPNs are privacy tools used by millions of Americans," they added.

Because VPN providers typically mix the data of hundreds or thousands of
users on a single server, intelligence officials could potentially monitor
web traffic to trace connections, sending legal requests to web service providers to learn more about the users connecting from a given IP address . Using a VPN may subject Americans to warrantless government surveillance.We need much more transparency and stricter limitations on how the government can use this data to bypass Americans privacy rights. https://t.co/hJQgh0M8ti April 13, 2026 The FPF also highlighted a growing, futuristic threat to digital privacy. While premium VPNs provide a robust layer of encryption that secures web traffic from internet service providers, intelligence agencies
are reportedly still collecting large swaths of encrypted data. What to read next Not equipped to handle that responsibility: the VPN industry reacts to TechRadar's latest research The Trump administration is building a website to help Europeans evade content bans 'A spectacularly bad idea' Digital rights advocates call on Wisconsin lawmakers to reject VPN ban bill

The foundation warned that this data could be stockpiled for " harvest now, decrypt later " attacks. In this scenario, attackers copy encrypted traffic today with the hope of reading it tomorrow using exponentially more powerful quantum computers.

According to the FPF, Google security researchers have warned that the industry should prepare for this potential risk "as soon as 2029". Calls for surveillance reform To prevent intelligence agencies from exploiting foreign surveillance powers, the FPF is urging Congress to implement strict
safeguards before deciding whether to reauthorize Section 702 of FISA.

Chief among their demands is the closure of the "backdoor search loophole," which would force the government to obtain a legal warrant before searching the communications of Americans collected under Section 702.

The Foundation is also calling for an end to the "data broker loophole,"
which currently allows federal agencies to purchase sensitive data about citizens that would normally require a warrant to access.

Advocates argue that passing the proposed Government Surveillance Reform Act would solidify these crucial changes. Until then, the FPF says the public deserves clarity: "It's therefore crucial that the American public has
answers about how our intelligence community monitors our VPN traffic". Today's best VPN deals NordVPN 2 Year 2.59 /mth View +3 months free Surfshark 24 Months 1.49 /mth View Proton VPN 2.39 /mth View We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices Follow TechRadar on Google News and
add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!



======================================================================
Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/press-freedom-group-asks-us -lawmakers-for-transparency-over-alleged-vpn-surveillance


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)