EFF sues feds for info on social network surveillance

The Electronic Frontier Foundation sued the CIA, Defense Department, Justice Department and three other government agencies on Tuesday for allegedly refusing to release information about how they are using social networks in surveillance and investigations. The nonprofit Internet rights watchdog group formally asked more than a dozen agencies or departments in early October to provide records about federal guidelines on the use of sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr for investigative or data gathering purposes, according to the lawsuit. The requests were prompted by published news reports about how authorities are using social networks to monitor citizen activities and aid in investigations.