FBI searched for name of US senator facing foreign threat in latest improper use of intelligence database

Newly declassified court documents revealed Friday that the FBI improperly searched for the name of a US senator in an intelligence database after indications of a foreign threat against the lawmaker, as the intelligence program has come under a barrage of criticism in Congress and from privacy advocates.

The database, which was created under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, allows US intelligence agencies to conduct broad searches to identify threats and leads related to foreign intelligence missions.

The new court filing comes during a bitter battle in Congress over whether to reauthorize Section 702, which is set to expire at the end of this year. While US agencies have touted improvement in properly using section 702 as a vital tool to identify and combat foreign threats, the law faces an uncertain future with lawmakers raising concerns over possible abuses.

After a court found in 2020 that that the FBI routinely failed to follow correct procedures for use of the database, the FBI implemented a series of reforms aimed at curbing misuse. Many of those guidelines applied to the standard for how queries are conducted on Americans - which were not met in the senator's case, according to the court document.

"Section 702 is critical in our fight against foreign adversaries. We take seriously our role in protecting national security and we take just as seriously our responsibility to be good stewards of our Section 702 authorities," FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement. "Compliance is an ongoing endeavor, and we recently announced new additional accountability measures."

Section 702 allows US intelligence agencies to collect the phone calls and text messages of foreign targets overseas from US telecommunications providers without a warrant. The privacy debate centers on the collection of communications of Americans in touch with those foreign targets. Analysts at multiple intelligence agencies can then search databases for leads related to foreign intelligence missions.

Judge Rudolph Contreras outlined how the federal government had improved its use of Section 702 in his opinion, which was written in April but released Friday, as the FBI continues to implement strict reforms around the program and says it has dramatically reduced misuse.