this post was submitted on 26 Mar 2026
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In a letter sent Thursday to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, the lawmakers say that because VPNs obscure a user's true location, and because intelligence agencies presume that communications of unknown origin are foreign, Americans may be inadvertently waiving the privacy protections they're entitled to under the law.

Several federal agencies, including the FBI, NSA, and FTC, have recommended that consumers use VPNs to protect their privacy. But following that advice may inadvertently cost Americans the very protections they're seeking.

The letter was signed by members of the Democratic Party’s progressive flank: Senators Ron Wyden, Elizabeth Warren, Edward Markey, and Alex Padilla, along with Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Sara Jacobs.

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[–] Willdrick@lemmy.world 17 points 13 hours ago

Lmao then they bitch and moan when people abroad start cutting back on us-based tech and enforcing open standards

[–] Zacryon@feddit.org 14 points 13 hours ago

After what Snowden has uncovered, Palantir plain in the open, companies like Meta/Facebook and Alphabet/Google shitting on your privacy , I am absolutely sure you will be subject to spying always and regardless of what you're doing.

[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 17 points 16 hours ago

Does anyone seriously believe that not using a VPN would save you from governmental snooping?

[–] Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 8 points 14 hours ago

reddit pretty much would ban people using vpn , so they know too.

[–] MrSulu@lemmy.ml 7 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

Just think of all the children they will be protecting! (Sarcasm)

I note the range of Republicans and dRepublicans (Democrats are Republicans in every meaningful way) who support this action (not sarcasm)

[–] SabinStargem@lemmy.today 38 points 22 hours ago

As if they weren't already scooping up people's information already. The point of VPN and other defenses is just to make investigation too expensive to do as a free action.

[–] cmeu@lemmy.world 69 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I hate the way this is getting it twisted.

Just because your signal is misinterpreted does not mean you've waived your rights. It means their system and it's use of citizen's data is flawed and violates the law.

[–] Greyghoster@aussie.zone 12 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

I thought the law said that inadvertent collection has to be deleted asap not that you forfeited your rights.

[–] cmeu@lemmy.world 9 points 22 hours ago* (last edited 22 hours ago)

Right? The real irony is that those who are paid to enforce the law, and who're sworn to uphold it, feel they're above it - beyond reproach.

The system is sick with apathy and outright corruption.

We must save ourselves

[–] schwim@piefed.zip 163 points 1 day ago

...Americans may be inadvertently waiving the privacy protections they’re entitled to under the law.

We have no protections and no privacy, laws or no.

[–] RoddyStiggs@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 21 hours ago

No.

Stop fearbaiting.

[–] BlameTheAntifa@lemmy.world 104 points 1 day ago (2 children)

So in the US, locking your metaphorical doors or windows, or closing your digital curtains, means that authorities can presume you are hiding something and your 4th Amendments rights cease to be valid.

[–] Cocodapuf@lemmy.world 3 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago)

Well, while I agree with that sentiment, you may be looking at it the wrong way.

It's not that locking your doors gives them permission, it's that they're just doing it whether you lock your doors or not.

Imagine you're the NSA, imagine you're already spying on every American who isn't using a VPN (not because you have any legal right to, but because you can). Now ask yourself, where's your biggest blind spot?

This is why they want legal permission to spy on people using VPNs. If they can do it legally, they can just walk right into a VPN's server room and install whatever eyes they want on the inside.

All I'm saying, is that there is no constitutional justification for this, they don't care. Their plan is simple, spy on everyone, fuck the law.

[–] hansolo@lemmy.today 62 points 1 day ago

All while abusing Third Party Doctrine to buy your data from advertisers and Palantir anyway.

If a VPN routing of someone in Chicago is via Texas and California, what judge would see that as "foreign"? Oh, right, one of their idiot ones they like to give cases like this.

[–] chunes@lemmy.world 53 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Americans may be inadvertently waiving the privacy protections they're entitled to under the law.

lmao

[–] mic_check_one_two@lemmy.dbzer0.com 32 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Yeah. That really jumped out at me. My very first thought was “Americans have privacy protections?” Since Roe v Wade was overturned, Americans have basically no right to privacy.

[–] f4f4f4f4f4f4f4f4@sopuli.xyz 112 points 1 day ago

Old news... If you are using a VPN, it's "foreign communications" and subject to spying; and if you aren't using a VPN, they route the data through a room that's considered a foreign enclave (like an embassy), turning it into "foreign communications" and subject to spying.

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 68 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Did they stop spying on americans. Im pretty sure snowden is still living in russia.

[–] IAmYouButYouDontKnowYet@reddthat.com 34 points 1 day ago (2 children)

America should have took him seriously.

I really think there's no worth in the average American people anymore.

I took him seriously. I was a teenager when Snowden leaked those documents, and I took it seriously.

Why do you think I'm here today?

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 24 points 1 day ago

Yeah it was pretty big. So much of modern times it just boggles my mind for anyone who grew up in the 80's. We are literally how we portrayed russia or what we would become like if we let communism win. A whistle blower had to flee to russia. 100% bin laden won. Half my life has been in this millenium and there is a stark difference before and after (even with there being plenty which headed us in this direction).

[–] trackball_fetish@lemmy.wtf 38 points 1 day ago (2 children)

The entirety of this has made me furious so I'm leaving a comment to remember to come back and soapbox in a bit.

[–] trackball_fetish@lemmy.wtf 20 points 1 day ago

https://www.scribd.com/document/1017859680/Congressional-VPN-Letter-to-Dni

And the letter (because these asshats make these things difficult to find)

[–] SleeplessCityLights@programming.dev 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Lemmy, where the ND people are aware enough to know that by nature they get impulsively angry and need to cool off. I am not good at it.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 3 points 23 hours ago (4 children)

I can't tell which, if any, of these are what "ND" is supposed to mean here.

So, uh, "ND"?

[–] ProfessorProteus@lemmy.world 2 points 20 hours ago

My guess is "neurodivergent" which, interestingly, doesn't seem to be on that list.

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[–] Ghostie@lemmy.zip 61 points 1 day ago

“Mighty suspicious of you to protect yourself from our abuse. You must be up to no good.”

[–] Tempus_Fugit@lemmy.world 76 points 1 day ago

Lmao, what privacy protections? This is the land of the grift, you're more protected using a VPN than without one.

[–] WingsofLove03@retrolemmy.com 2 points 16 hours ago

Wow! Interesting I didn’t know

[–] Quazatron@lemmy.world 13 points 1 day ago (4 children)

I hope they enjoy Farscape, because that's what they're getting of they eavesdrop me.

[–] Someonelol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 19 hours ago

"Do I hear chanting and laser gun sounds?"

  • Some NSA agent, probably
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[–] BassTurd@lemmy.world 28 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm curious how this works in action. If you use a VPN provider that doesn't do logging, and inherently you're traffic is encrypted via that VPN, what are they spying on? That's kind of the whole purpose of running a VPN in the first place.

If they happen to somehow see the unencrypted traffic, I hope they enjoy sifting through ass loads of torrent data. Good luck, shit bags.

[–] frongt@lemmy.zip 14 points 1 day ago (2 children)

It's not so much spying as moving you to the front of the line for suspicious persons.

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I already assume the gubmint can see everything else I do. The VPN just keeps my ISP from cancelling my service.

[–] THE_GR8_MIKE@lemmy.world 25 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I hope they have fun watching me pirate the entirety of the Pokémon anime then.

Just change your username AiLearningModule.

[–] sol6_vi@lemmy.makearmy.io 8 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Bro these last two years I've been put on every list. It's way too late for any of this.

[–] SirSamuel@lemmy.world 3 points 22 hours ago (2 children)

Ooh ooh, I know how to get on a list!

Ahem

Luigi did nothing wrong

[–] sol6_vi@lemmy.makearmy.io 1 points 1 hour ago

He really didn't. Great guy Luigi.

[–] PalmTreeIsBestTree@lemmy.world 3 points 20 hours ago

Luigi did nothing wrong…

…also I am Spartacus

[–] treadful@lemmy.zip 12 points 1 day ago
[–] entropiclyclaude@lemmy.wtf 12 points 1 day ago

It was the Swedes causing mass shootings in America the whole time!

  • Republicans probably
[–] RodgeGrabTheCat@sh.itjust.works 21 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (5 children)

Things keep going on their current path, I'll be using i2p fairly soon.

I wonder how the goberment feels about that?

Edit: spelling

They already spy on everyone. They probably do worse and promote social manipulation too.

Humanity is owned. And they are trying to own it further with air and digitizing everything. And they will succeed because most people don't give a fuck and just consume all the bullshit and lifestyles marketed to them.

[–] droopy4096@lemmy.ca 14 points 1 day ago (2 children)

like in the old days of illegal wiretapping when throughout the conversation one would randomly say "bomb", "arson", "nuke" etc. It's time to use more VPN to generate such a level of white noise where it becomes impractical to track VPN access...

[–] bigfish@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Why do you think they're buying so much AI shit right now? To filter through the noise for whatever they want to find. People aren't the bottleneck anymore.

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[–] Railcar8095@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Doesn't CGNat obscure the user true location in the same way? And what kind of VPN are we talking about? Company with exit node in the country? Commercial ones only?

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