Are U.S. Privacy Laws No Longer Applicable For Airline Passengers Who Use WiFi?

The Feds Cut a Deal With In-Flight Wi-Fi Providers, and Privacy Groups Are Worried -- Threat Level/Wired

Gogo, the inflight Wi-Fi provider, is used by millions of airline passengers each year to stay connected while flying the friendly skies. But if you think the long arm of government surveillance doesn’t have a vertical reach, think again.

Gogo and others that provide Wi-Fi aboard aircraft must follow the same wiretap provisions that require telecoms and terrestrial ISPs to assist U.S. law enforcement and the NSA in tracking users when so ordered. But they may be doing more than the law requires.

According to a letter Gogo submitted to the Federal Communications Commission, the company voluntarily exceeded the requirements of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, or CALEA, by adding capabilities to its service at the request of law enforcement. The revelation alarms civil liberties groups, which say companies should not be cutting deals with the government that may enhance the ability to monitor or track users.

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Update: NSA monitors WiFi on US planes ‘in violation’ of privacy laws -- RT

My Comment: As one who flies a lot and who always uses WiFi on the plane .... this story hits me and almost everyone else who flies. But what I find interesting about this story is that while I was doing the necessary research on it .... aside from Wire and Russian TV .... no one else is covering this story. Wow .... has the media now been told to shut up on the NSA and surveillance laws?