1. United States
2. Mass.
3. Letter

The escalating use of intrusive spyware by governments against citizens poses a grave threat to privacy and civil liberties. As outlined here, several Western democracies have been embroiled in scandals involving the deployment of powerful phone-hacking tools against political opponents, activists, journalists and vulnerable groups. With the incoming administration vowing unprecedented immigration crackdowns and raising concerns about potential surveillance abuses, we must ensure robust safeguards are in place to protect the privacy rights of all people in this country. I urge you to prioritize comprehensive legislation and oversight mechanisms to restrict the government's ability to conduct warrantless digital surveillance and to safeguard fundamental freedoms from overreach in the name of enforcement. Unchecked, these technologies risk creating a pervasive climate of monitoring incompatible with a free society. Preserving privacy and due process must be a paramount consideration as policies in this realm advance.