Using Databases to Prevent Crime

The Senate Judiciary Committee will examine proposed Justice Department guidelines that would give federal investigators new license to mine publicly available databases and monitor Web use.
Since Sept. 11, Congress has enacted legislation that greatly expands law enforcement's ability to monitor communications through the so-called Patriot Act. America's allies have also sought to bolster laws aimed at aiding investigators, with the European Parliament last week approving guidelines that would force Internet companies to preserve data about their sites for possible future investigations.
FBI guidelines from Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller would allow field agents to gather information outside of criminal investigations, relaxing regulations set in the 1970s. …