Obama hints at changing phone records collection

Washington: President Barack Obama suggested Friday he may be ready to make changes in the bulk collection of Americans’ phone records to ease the public’s concern about privacy. Obama said he has not yet made any decisions about the National Security Agency’s collection programs. But among the dozens of recommendations he’s considering, he hinted that he may strip the NSA of its ability to store data in its own facilities and instead shift that storage to private phone companies. He spoke at an end-of-year news conference. [caption id=“attachment_1300055” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  President Barack Obama leaves the podium after his end-of-the-year news conference in the Brady Press Room at the White House in Washington, Friday. AP[/caption] His hint at concessions came the same week a federal judge declared the bulk collection program unconstitutional and a presidential advisory panel that included intelligence experts suggested reforms. Both said there was little evidence any terror plot had been thwarted by the program. The bulk collection program sweeps up what’s known as metadata for every phone call made in the U.S. It collects the number called, the number from which the call is made and the duration and time of the call. “There are ways we can do it, potentially, that gives people greater assurance that there are checks and balances — that there’s sufficient oversight and sufficient transparency,” Obama said. Programs like the bulk collection of phone records “could be redesigned in ways that give you the same information when you need it without creating these potentials for abuse.” The advisory panel offered 46 recommendations in the wake of public outrage over the government’s vast surveillance. Obama continued to defend the need for the program, for national security. The federal judge who declared the vast phone data collection unconstitutional, Richard Leon, called the NSA’s operation “Orwellian” in scale. However, he stopped his ruling Monday from taking effect, pending a likely government appeal. The surveillance programs have been revealed over the past six months after a former NSA systems analyst, Edward Snowden, disclosed classified materials. Obama insisted there has been no abuse of the information collected and stored on Americans. But he said he understands that the public is concerned about privacy. He said he would make an announcement about these programs in January. “I have confidence in the fact that the NSA is not engaging in domestic surveillance or snooping around,” Obama said, adding that he understands the potential for abuse can change as technologies evolve. “We may have to refine this further to give people more confidence. And I’m going to be working very hard on doing that.” AP