FBI operating small air force of low-flying surveillance planes: Report
US law enforcement officials have confirmed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is operating a small air force with scores of low-flying surveillance planes across the country, a report says.
The Associated Press revealed in an exclusive report, published on Tuesday, that the FBI is using fictitious companies to hide its wide-scale surveillance program.
The aircraft are carrying video and cellphone surveillance technology, the report said.
The FBI is using surveillance equipment without courts’ approval, but the agency says the flights are used for specific, ongoing investigations.
An AP review found that in a period of one month, the FBI flew surveillance planes over 30 cities in 11 states all over the United States.
The government claims that aerial surveillance is aimed at conducting criminal, terrorism or intelligence probes, but activists say the program is undermining civil liberties of citizens.
The AP report found that at least 13 fake companies, such as FVX Research, KQM Aviation, NBR Aviation and PXW Services, are operating these surveillance planes.
FBI spokesman Christopher Allen claimed in a statement that the program is not clandestine. "Specific aircraft and their capabilities are protected for operational security purposes."
Allen added that the FBI's planes "are not equipped, designed or used for bulk collection activities or mass surveillance."
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, who in 2013 revealed the existence of massive spying program run by the National Security Agency, has said that US government surveillance methods far surpass those of an ‘Orwellian’ state, referring to George Orwell’s classic novel “1984,” which describes a society where personal privacy is continuously invaded by spy agencies.
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