DOJ Inspector General Investigating DEA's Use of Parallel Construction under Hemisphere

"The OIG is examining the DEA's use of administrative subpoenas to obtain broad collections of data or information. The review will address the legal authority for the acquisition or use of these data collections; the existence and effectiveness of any policies and procedural safeguards established with respect to the collection, use, and retention of the data; the creation, dissemination, and usefulness of any products generated from the data; and the use of "parallel construction" or other techniques to protect the confidentiality of these programs."

"The description doesn't say it, but this is Hemisphere, the program under which DEA submits administrative subpoenas to AT&T for phone records from any carrier that uses AT&T's backbone. DEA gets information matching burner phones as well as the call records. In addition, it gets some geolocation - and continued to increase what it was getting even after US v Jones raised concerns about such tracking."

The Department of Justice Office of Inspector General is reviewing DEA use of administrative subpoenas to acquire broad collections of data and information. The review will assess legal authority, policies and procedural safeguards for collection, use, and retention, and will evaluate products generated from the data. The review will also examine whether and how parallel construction or other techniques are used to protect program confidentiality. Hemisphere involves DEA administrative subpoenas to AT&T for phone records across carriers using AT&T's backbone, yielding burner-phone matches, call records, and increasing geolocation data despite legal concerns raised by US v Jones.

Read at Emptywheel