Science & Tech

The FBI’s Quiet Plan To Expand Its Hacking Powers

Authorities are asking a little-known rule-making panel to increase the FBI’s search warrant powers to remotely hack into computers. By Dustin Volz

Science & Tech

The NSA's Mass-Surveillance Program Is About to Go on Trial

More than a year after Edward Snowden’s disclosures, an Appeals Court will weigh the government’s bulk collection of U.S. phone records. By Dustin Volz

Science & Tech

British Spies Don't Need a Warrant To Sift Through NSA Surveillance Data

The U.S. isn't the only country with lax judicial oversight in how its intelligence agencies comb through communications data collected by the NSA. By Dustin Volz

Ideas

Counterterrorism Messaging Needs To Move From State to CIA

The information battleground against the Islamic State should be fought by the CIA. Here’s why. By Philip Seib

Business

The Pentagon Still Needs More Eyes in the Sky

After more than a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq, airborne intelligence will be critical for years to come. By Marcus Weisgerber

Science & Tech

Mass Surveillance Distracts an Overwhelmed Intelligence Community, Snowden Says

Fugitive leaker Edward Snowden said surveilling extremists and following through on intelligence leads is a better counterterrorism tactic than mass spying. By Dustin Volz

Science & Tech

Twitter Sues the Government To Disclose More About Spying

Twitter’s legal action breaks from an agreement other tech giants made with the government earlier this year. By Dustin Volz

Science & Tech

The Quiet Rise of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency

The NGA's intelligence-gathering has played a key role in every major world crisis since the raid on Osama bin Laden in 2011. By Jack Moore

Ideas

What Drones Can Do Besides Killing Terrorists

It’s time everyone – including the media – start distinguishing between combat drones that kill and surveillance drones that save lives. By Melissa S. Hersh

Science & Tech

Fighting Ebola with Data, Satellites and Drones

Some of the intelligence tools that militaries use to gather intelligence could play a growing role in preventing the worst-case scenario. By Patrick Tucker

Science & Tech

The Military Wants to Understand Why You Believe What You Believe

What makes an idea like the Islamic State spread? The Pentagon wants to know. By Patrick Tucker

Threats

NSA Says Intelligence on the Islamic State Could Have Been 'Stronger'

The nation’s top spies account for faulty intelligence in Iraq and warn that ‘it could get bad.’ By Patrick Tucker

Threats

China Wants To Replicate NSA’s Cyber Schools

About 60 Chinese schools are interested in incorporating the NSA’s cyber education program in their curriculums. By Aliya Sternstein

Policy

NSA Chief: Yes, We Still Have Friends

A confident Adm. Rogers says the NSA remains popular with the people it spied on. By Patrick Tucker

Policy

Obama’s Deadline To Reform NSA’s Spying Powers Is Extended Again

Nine months after the president promised to rein in the NSA’s spying powers, the business of reform is delayed for 90 days -- again. By Dustin Volz

Policy

NSA Reform Will Likely Wait Until After the Election

It looks increasingly like legislation to reform the government’s surveillance programs might not get touched at all until next year. By Dustin Volz

Ideas

A Case for Edward Snowden's Immunity

Any effort that tries to rebuild the well-behaved aspects of the NSA's surveillance system while ignoring the critical role of whistleblowers is sure to fail. By Yochai Benkler

Science & Tech

What Made Obama's Spy Chief Suddenly Support NSA Reform?

In a remarkable shift, James Clapper has come out in support of legislation that would effectively end the bulk collection of U.S. citizens' phone records. By Dustin Volz

Business

What to Expect From Obama's Resurgent Intel Advisory Panel

The president's Intelligence Advisory Board had only 4 members a year ago. Will the panel's 6 new appointees hit the ground running? By Aliya Sternstein