I sent the following letter out, and urge others to do the same.

July 23, 2002

Dear Senators,

I urge you to oppose the Cyber Security Enhancement Act (CSEA), passed by the House of Representatives on July 15, 2002. The act at once expands government surveillance capabilities and the elimination of safe harbors for first-time interceptors of cellular phone traffic.

I disagree with the provisions outlined in Section 108. As a cell phone owner, I support cellular phone privacy, but I don't believe that a harsher penalty for radio hobbyists is the way to achieve it. Cellular phone traffic does not become more secure by charging first-time offenders with felonies and putting them in jail for five years.

As an Federal Communications Commission licensed amateur radio operator for five years, I am well familiar with the insecurity of radio signals. It may surprise you that an old UHF black and white television can receive older-style cellular phone transmissions with remarkable clarity. This isn't a failure on the part of the television or the television owner, but the cellular networks for not providing customers with technically available security. Please don't criminalize the actions of curious hobbyists for the shortcomings of a highly profitable industry.

Section 102 of CSEA is an alarming expansion of the "emergency exception" to judicial review requirements for obtaining voicemail and email. In particular, the act's "good faith" requirement for service providers seems ripe for abuse. By relaxing the standard from a "reasonable belief" to "a good faith belief," the act seems to encourage the use of scare tactics and alarmism, rather than evidence and facts, to uncover information. Under the provision, a provider has no incentive to protect a customers' privacy or obligation to report inquiries.

Further, an emergency is no longer required to be "imminent" for disclosure to be made. In other words, an indeterminate threat that may take place at some unknown point in the future is enough to reveal personal information. This standard is unacceptably weak.

Also, CSEA allows disclosure to "a Federal, State, or local government entity," not just law enforcement agents. As it is written, the act seems to allow public high school principals and tax collectors to request information from service providers.

Your constituents' civil liberties are the most important right that they hold as United States citizens. Please reject the Cyber Security Enhancement Act. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Rob Carlson
2600 North Calvert St.
Baltimore, MD 21218

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