On Jan. 23, the Senate unanimously passed a measure requiring the government to produce a detailed report on the TIA system's goals, costs and consequences. The senator sponsoring the amendment, Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said he was worried that TIA -- a Defense Department research project that aims to identify terrorists by analyzing personal data collected in computer databases -- was being developed without congressional oversight; his plan, he said, would cause the program to be "respectful of constitutional protections and safeguards, while still ensuring that our nation can continue to fight terrorism." But while Congress asks for reports, TIA is already steaming forward. According to people with knowledge of the program, TIA has now advanced to the point where it's much more than a mere "research project." There is a working prototype of the system, and federal agencies outside the Defense Department have expressed interest in it. Most alarmingly, an examination of the research that has been conducted so far into TIA reveals that even while the project has been charging ahead, only token attention has been paid to perhaps its most critical aspect -- privacy and civil liberties protection. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is taking the lead on TIA, has stymied the efforts of outside groups to find out more about TIA's protections. Scary update on what's happening here - good to see that Congress is concerned about constitutionality and privacy, bad to see that the administration is still trying to side-step those checks and balances. Total Information Awareness: Down, but not out | 
