FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing that the agency buys commercially available data, including location information that can track Americans. The admission came in response to questions from Sen. Ron Wyden, who criticized it as an end-run around the Fourth Amendment. Sen. Tom Cotton defended the practice, likening it to searching public trash.
At a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on March 18, 2026, FBI Director Kash Patel acknowledged under oath that the FBI purchases commercially available information consistent with the Constitution and the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). This data has led to valuable intelligence, Patel said, in response to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who referenced former Director Christopher Wray's 2023 testimony that the agency had stopped buying location data from internet advertising sources for a national security pilot project that was no longer active. Wyden asked, “Is that the case still, and if so, can you commit this morning to not buying Americans’ location data?” Patel replied, “The FBI uses all tools to do our mission. We do purchase commercially available information that’s consistent with the Constitution and the laws under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and it has led to some valuable intelligence for us.” Wyden responded, “So you’re saying that the agency will buy Americans’ location data,” calling it “an outrageous end-run around the 4th Amendment,” especially with AI analyzing personal data. He advocated for the bipartisan Government Surveillance Reform Act, co-introduced with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), which would require warrants for such purchases. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) supported the purchases, stating, “If any other person can buy it and the FBI can buy it and it helps them locate a depraved child molester or savage cartel leader, I certainly hope the FBI is doing anything they can to keep Americans safe.” Cotton compared it to Supreme Court precedent allowing searches of curbside trash. The exchange occurs amid debates over reauthorizing FISA Section 702 before its April 19, 2026, expiration. An FBI representative provided no further comment beyond Patel's remarks.
