Re the speculation tag The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution prohibits the search or seizure of a person s papers or effects without a court ordered warrant based on probable cause that the person in question is planning or is guilty of an actual crime and particularly describing what is to be seized However the US government has made strenuous efforts to prevent federal courts from ruling on whether the NSA s surveillance efforts comply with the Fourth Amendment speculation I think I can turn up articles outlining the various cases brought against the NSA etc The one that springs to mind immediately is Clapper v Amnesty International I ll get to it after I finish detailing the latest Snowden leak