Targeted surveillance could be the new weapon against terrorism

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Years of disclosures about spying by the federal government have made Americans increasingly wary about mass surveillance regimes, and lawmakers have responded by seeking to impose more restrictions on such programs. But there are indications that targeted deterrence efforts could be on the rise as indiscriminate surveillance recedes.

"I think people are increasingly aware that their privacy is under threat," Michael Fertik, a Harvard lawyer who founded the privacy-protection website Reputation.com, told the Washington Examiner. "They don't know how their privacy is threatened, or what happens to their data … they just don't like invasion of their privacy."

As a result, lawmakers have taken aim at the surveillance state. "The bulk collection of innocent Americans' data is not only a government intrusion, but it also overwhelms intelligence agents, increasing the likelihood they miss crucial information," Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., said on Dec. 8. "The promulgation that the terrorist onslaught in Paris could've been prevented under the NSA's overbearing bulk data collection program is fundamentally false. It was still in effect at the time of the Boston Marathon and Paris attacks, as well as the lead up to the attacks in San Bernardino."

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