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The FBI appeared to go beyond the scope of existing legal guidance in seeking certain kinds of internet records from Twitter as recently as last year, legal experts said, citing two warrantless surveillance orders the social media company published on Friday.
Twitter said its disclosures were the first time the company had been allowed to publicly reveal the secretive orders, which were delivered with gag orders when they were issued in 2015 and 2016.
Each of the two new orders, known as national security letters or NSLs, specifically request a type of data known as electronic communication transaction records, which can include some email header data and browsing history, among other information.
In doing so, the orders bolster the belief among privacy advocates that the FBI has routinely used NSLs to seek internet records beyond the limitations set down in 2008.
National security letters are a type of government order for communications data sent to service providers. They are usually issued with a gag order, meaning the target is often unaware that records are being accessed, and they do not require a warrant.
Their frequency and breadth expanded dramatically under the Patriot Act, which was passed shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Tens of thousands of NSLs are issued annually.
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