Google, Facebook, Yahoo, rights groups oppose FBI expansion of surveillance powers

Google, Facebook, Yahoo and industry and civil rights groups have opposed legislation that would extend the categories of Internet records that the U.S. government can collect without court approval through administrative orders known as National Security Letters.

The companies and groups have pointed out in a letter to senators that the new provisions would expand the types of records, known as Electronic Communication Transactional Records (ECTRs), which the Federal Bureau of Investigation can obtain using the NSLs.

The ECTRs would include a variety of online information, such as IP addresses, routing and transmission information, session data, a person’s browsing history, email metadata, location information, and the exact date and time a person signs in or out of a particular online account.

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