Sample Essay On USA Patriot Act

The USA PATRIOT (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism) Act was passed in October 26, 2001. Its creation was based on the September 11th terrorist attack that killed dozens of people. Its legislation was quick and it only took five weeks for the law to be passed. As a result of the hasty process, many provision were not carefully studied and some of it will have great impact not only to the American Citizens but also to foreign people (“Introduction to,” 2002).

EFFECTS ON FINANCE

The Title III provision, entitled” International Money Laundering Abatement and Financial Anti-Terrorism Act of 2001,” affects the U.S. community of financial and professional banking institutions involved in foreign transaction. Restrictions and other controlling measure was imposed by Title III to closely look at financial assets to eliminate what they call “financial fuel of terrorist operation.” Accounting books was the main concern of Title III. It requires banks and other financial institutions to closely track transactions involving countries which money laundering is a known problem. It prevents businesses with offshore shell banks that are unaffiliated with a bank on the U. S. territory. Political figures were also keep tracked. Their past issues with corruption will be accounted to their present financial status will be checked (Bloomenthal, n.d.).
Many believed that the Title III is flawed and may cause further complexities in finance management. There are no concrete levels of information to satisfy the inquiry that is proposed by the law to identify a person or an institution that makes bank transactions a fraud or a terrorist. Applications for foreign accounts was also made tedious and complex. Application requirements have increased and strict level of background checked was done in opening the accounts. It takes time and effort to satisfy the requirements being imposed (Bloomenthal, n.d.).

EFFECTS ON CLOUD COMPUTING

Long before the Patriot Act was passed, the U. S. Government have long been allowed to access private information through the use of several laws from decade old laws. Amendment was made on the old laws to ensure that it will not violate privacy of people and private sectors (“US Patriot Act,” n.d.).
These existing laws are the Wiretap Act, Stored Communications Act, Pen Register Act, Foreign Intelligence Sureveillance Act, Communication Assistance to Law Enforcement Act, and the Economic Espionage Act. These laws were used to gather digital data than could be used by law enforcers in specific cases. In addition, different premises were covered by these laws. For example, the Wiretap Act allows law enforcers to access the data in transit while the Stored Communication Act pertains to data in storage. These acts were all included in the Patriot Act (“US Patriot Act,” n.d.).
A court order or subpoena is required to access or obtain data that are needed in an investigation or in other suspicious activities. A detailed report must be submitted detailing the investigation, including the number of people whose communication were tapped for the access of data to be reasonable. It is inefficient because before the investigation to proceed, numerous papers must be submitted for the access of digital data to be justified. It is also costly because the average costs of interception is around $50,000 (“US Patriot Act,” n.d.).
There is an ongoing debate on whether the government may access the data privately without first getting permission. It is hard to balance out the jurisdiction in such cases because privacy is one of the main concern of the citizens. Protection of personal data cannot be secured because of the loosed implementation of such laws (“US Patriot Act,” n.d.).

EFFECTS ON NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION

Non-profit organizations were given a red flag when the US Patriot Act was passed. Several Muslim-based non-profit organizations were shut down. Criminal charges were not made but their activities are stopped, their assets were froze, and their properties were seized together with the impending investigations without having proper evidence. These acts were supported by the law (“Impact on,” 2003).
The pressure has shifted to these types of non-profit organizations. They must prove their innocence, or else, they will be investigated. It also affects them because government can control the information that will be passed to the jurisdiction. They can be proven guilty without having a fight at the court. These “secret evidence” made it difficult for the non-profit organizations to understand the act. Others have decided to shut down their activities just for them to be safe in the eyes of the security enforcement group (“Impact on,” 2003).
One example is the investigation of the Global Relief Foundation (GRF). FBI raided one of their headquarters in Chicago. Equipment and documents are confiscated with the pending investigation. They also arrested the head of the organization, Rabih Haddad. His case was visa violation and its consequences are minor fines or deportation and yet he was imprisoned for 14 months (“Impact on,” 2003).
The US Patriot Act must be amended. Clarification on some of parts of the law must be done and thorough examination and consultation must be conducted. It does not only affect a few people, but an entire country even overseas. Some of its rules are not applicable at present and should be excluded in application of the law. Lastly, it is does not only cause confusion to the people but also to the governing body that will apply the law.

References

Bloomenthal, Andrew (n.d.). How the Patriot Act Works & Why It Is Important. Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/090214/how-patriot-act-affects-you-today.asp
Introduction to Module V: The Introduction to USA Patriot Act, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance and Cyberspace Privacy. Retrieved from http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/privacy/Introduction%20to%20Module%20V.htm
The USA Patriot Act and its Impact on Nonprofit Organizations. Retrieved from http://www.foreffectivegov.org/node/1592
USA Patriot Act Effect on Cloud Computing Services. Retriecved from http://www.itlawgroup.com/resources/articles/113-usa-patriot-act-effect-on-cloud-computing-services.