Captain Kirk and the IRS Can Read Your Email By Rich Valdes | The Washington Times Communities

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Friday, April 12, 2013 - A-List on Americanism by Rich Valdes
WASHINGTON, April 12, 2013 — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
has released statements indicating that it can read taxpayer emails
without a search warrant or court order, if they are more than six months
old, by simply having an IRS agent authorize an administrative subpoena.
What’s more, the New York Daily News reports that The American Civil
Liberties Union has filed papers asking if the IRS is using this loophole to
also scan social media, which can easily be found publicly on the web. In
fact, emails that are less than 180 days old can be viewed without a
search warrant as well, if they have been opened and are still in your
inbox, according to this regulation.
The loophole comes from The Electronic Communications Privacy Act, a
federal regulation instituted in 1986, before email was commonly used for
personal communication as it is today. However, on June 18, 2007 the
Sixth Circuit US Court of Appeals found portions of the Act to be
unconstitutional. It specifically struck down those portions that allow
government investigators to access personal emails without a search
warrant because it violates our reasonable expectation of privacy under
the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution. So under the court’s
Captain Kirk and the IRS: The IRS can read your
email
Photo: AP
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decision, if the government wants to use a court order or subpoena with
anything less than probable cause, they must first notify the individual to
obtain their consent for those email records.
What’s even more concerning is that all of this is happening and our
leaders aren’t even aware of it. During an April 11 White House press
briefing, reporters asked President Obama’s Press Secretary, Jay Carney,
about the IRS snooping on taxpayer text messages and emails.
Carney remarked, “I’m not aware of the story, uh, or the documents
concerned …” He then deflected the question by passing the buck back
to the IRS for answers to these questions.
Rest assured that while the White House was not aware of what’s going
on at the IRS regarding “email-gate,” Captain James T. Kirk, himself, was
well aware of another IRS abuse we’ll call “video-gate.” Actor William
Shatner, the iconic captain of the Starship Enterprise tweeted on March
23 regarding a separate IRS issue: “So I watched that IRS video. I am
appalled at the utter waste of US tax dollars.” Shatner was referring to a
six-minute training video produced by the IRS at a cost of $60,000.00
where IRS workers claimed: “to boldly go where no government employee
has gone before.”
Interestingly, Shatner’s tweet to his 1.5 million followers gained an
immediate response from the IRS, apologizing in a statement: “The
IRS recognizes and takes seriously our obligation to be good stewards
of government and taxpayer dollars,” the agency said in a statement.
“There is no mistaking that this video did not reflect the best stewardship
of resources.” So the IRS responds to tweets from A-listers but seems to
throw caution to the wind when it comes to our constitutional rights to
privacy.
So how far is too far, and should the government violate our privacy without a search warrant issued
due to probable cause in a criminal investigation? How does the idea of the IRS’ interpretation of this
legal loophole affect your email inbox?
About the Author: Rich Valdes is a former official in New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s
Administration and marketing professional who has managed projects for government agencies,
educational institutions, and entertainment clients; producing high-profile special events for various
charities and celebrities. As a frequent contributor to TV, radio, and print media outlets. Rich’s
commentary on social issues and popular culture have been featured on Hot 97 FM, CNN Headline
News, Telemundo, Univision, HHR and The Washington Times. When not debating, politics,
education, and culture, Rich is a single dad, school board member, and Young Benefactor at VH1 Save
The Music Foundation. Rich attended New York University and is pusuing a Master’s degree at
Lincoln University of Pennsylvania. Rich is raising his two young daughters and caring for his elderly
father in the New York City suburb of Bergen County, New Jersey.
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• Reply •
Tim Kern • 2 years ago
I don't think the IRS is reading my emails, at least. If they did, they'd know I'm looking
for a high-capacity American-made guillotine for just these occasions.
Fortunately for most of the government, they've already killed off enough American
manufacturing that such devices are available only from overseas, and I don't think a
Chinese guillotine would last long enough to do the job.
Sarcastic letter, perhaps, to follow.
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