The Democratization of Big Data

The author explores the origins of “big data” and how the phenomenon was able to spread to a wider audience through parallel technological advances in computer hardware and the open source movement. The article focuses specifically on the progress made by Google related to a series of papers published from 2003 to 2006 that were… Continue reading The Democratization of Big Data

The NSA and Accountability in an Era of Big Data

In his symposium speech, the General Counsel of the National Security Agency, Raj De attempts to bridge the gap between the public discourse about NSA and the reality of the legal rules, oversight, and responsibility that currently exist at the agency. De sought to clarify NSA’s activities relating to data collection and storage and what… Continue reading The NSA and Accountability in an Era of Big Data

On the Bulk Collection of Tangible Things

This article examines the controversy surrounding bulk telephone metadata collection that has ensued since their disclosure in June 2013. The author analyzes the “use of tangible things” provision to acquire telephony metadata, including limitations on this practice, the statutory issues such a practice raises, and the ways in which the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has… Continue reading On the Bulk Collection of Tangible Things