A History of FISA Section 702 Compliance Violations

The four timelines below display records of compliance violations with Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (read more about Section 702 here). The first timeline displays all violations, and the following three timelines provide a more granular look at separate categories of violations. 

These timelines are the only publicly available resources that provide a comprehensive view of the types and patterns of compliance violations over the course of the existence of Section 702. While these violations are not willful—they are inadvertent or unintentional—they are extremely concerning. As this interactive timeline shows, these hundreds of violations represent systemic problems that result from the scope and complexity of the Section 702 surveillance program. These unintentional violations are a threat to Americans’ privacy, and their impact can be significant and prolonged.

This resource was developed by reviewing all of the publicly released materials on Section 702. More information on our methodology can be found here.