Federal Bureau of Investigations

NSLs are a used by the government to force telecom companies to give upcustomer information without the use of a warrant from a judge.

(ANALYSIS) — During the 1960s, the Federal Bureau of Investigations covertly targeted civil-rights leaders, women’s movements and anti-war protestors, all in the name of domestic security. The secret practices led to a Senate investigation — the so-called Church Committee — which revealed that the FBI had infiltrated civilian movements and attempted to damage the groups with smear campaigns and harassment.

A pedestrian crossing from Mexico into the United States has his facial features and eyes scanned at a biometric kiosk Thursday, Dec. 10, 2015, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)