DHS’s use of secretive legal weapon draws congressional scrutiny

After a Washington Post investigation, House Democrats are asking tech giants how they handle administrative subpoenas targeting DHS’s critics.

Congressional Democrats launched an inquiry Monday into how tech giants handle demands from the Department of Homeland Security for personal information on Americans who criticize the agency.

The probe comes after The Washington Post investigated Homeland Security’s use of administrative subpoenas, a powerful but little-known legal instrument that federal agencies can issue without an order from a judge or grand jury.
In the fall, a 67-year-old retiree named Jon emailed Homeland Security prosecutor Joseph Dernbach to urge mercy for an Afghan seeking asylum. Five hours and one minute later, Jon received a notice from Google that the agency had requested information from his account. The next month, a pair of Homeland Security investigators showed up to his suburban Philadelphia home to interview him about the email.