I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4709 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to strengthen protections for law 
enforcement officers and the public by providing criminal penalties for 
the fraudulent acquisition or unauthorized disclosure of phone records. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 8, 2006 
Mr. SMITH of Texas (for himself, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. SCOTT 
of Virginia, Mr. CANNON, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California, Mr. WILSON 
of South Carolina, Ms. HERSETH, and Mr. REICHERT) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to strengthen protec-
tions for law enforcement officers and the public by 
providing criminal penalties for the fraudulent acquisition 
or unauthorized disclosure of phone records. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Law Enforcement and 
Phone Privacy Protection Act of 2006’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that—
(1) telephone records can be of great use to 
criminals because the information contained in call 
logs may include a wealth of personal data; 
(2) call logs may reveal the names of telephone 
users’ doctors, public and private relationships, busi-
ness associates, and more; 
(3) call logs are typically maintained for the ex-
clusive use of phone companies, their authorized 
agents, and authorized consumers; 
(4) telephone records have been obtained with-
out the knowledge or consent of consumers through 
the use of a number of fraudulent methods and de-
vices that include but are not limited to— 
(A) telephone company employees selling 
data to unauthorized data brokers; 
(B) ‘‘pretexting’’, whereby a data broker or 
other person represents they are an authorized 
consumer and convinces an agent of the tele-
phone company to release the data; or 
(C) gaining unauthorized Internet access 
to account data by improperly activating a con-
sumer’s account management features on a 
phone company’s webpage or contracting with 
an Internet-based data broker who trafficks in 
such records; and
(5) the unauthorized disclosure of telephone 
records not only assaults individual privacy but, in 
some instances, may further acts of domestic vio-
lence, compromise the personal safety of law enforce-
ment officers, their families, or confidential inform-
ants, and undermine the integrity of law enforce-
ment investigations. 
SEC. 3. FRAUD AND RELATED ACTIVITY IN CONNECTION 
WITH 
OBTAINING 
CONFIDENTIAL 
PHONE 
RECORDS INFORMATION OF A COVERED EN-
TITY. 
Chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is amend-
ed by inserting after section 1038 the following: 
‘‘§ 1039. Fraud and related activity in connection 
with 
obtaining 
confidential 
phone 
records information of a covered entity 
‘‘(a) CRIMINAL VIOLATION.—Whoever knowingly and 
intentionally obtains, or attempts to obtain, confidential 
phone records information of a covered entity, by— 
‘‘(1) making false or fraudulent statements or 
representations to an employee of a covered entity; 
‘‘(2) making such false or fraudulent state-
ments or representations to a customer of a covered 
entity;
‘‘(3) providing a document to a covered entity 
knowing that such document is false or fraudulent; 
or 
‘‘(4) accessing customer accounts of a covered 
entity via the Internet without prior authorization 
from the customer to whom such confidential 
records information relates; 
shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not more 
than 20 years, or both. 
‘‘(b) PROHIBITION ON SALE OR TRANSFER OF CON-
FIDENTIAL PHONE RECORDS INFORMATION.—Except as 
otherwise provided by applicable law, any person, includ-
ing any employee of a covered entity or any data broker, 
who knowingly and intentionally sells, transfers, or at-
tempts to sell or transfer, confidential phone records infor-
mation of a covered entity, without authorization from the 
customer to whom such confidential phone records infor-
mation relates, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned 
for not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(c) PROHIBITION
ON
PURCHASE
OF
PHONE 
RECORDS INFORMATION.—Except as otherwise provided 
by applicable law, any person who purchases confidential 
phone records information of a covered entity, knowing 
such information was obtained fraudulently or without 
prior authorization from the customer to whom such con-
fidential records information relates, shall be fined under 
this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(d) ENHANCED
PENALTIES
FOR
AGGRAVATED 
CASES.—Whoever violates, or attempts to violate, sub-
section (a) while violating another law of the United 
States or as part of a pattern of any illegal activity involv-
ing more than $100,000, or more than 50 customers of 
a covered entity, in a 12-month period shall, in addition 
to the penalties provided for in subsection (a), be fined 
twice the amount provided in subsection (b)(3) or (c)(3) 
(as the case may be) of section 3571 of this title, impris-
oned for not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(e) ENHANCED PENALTIES FOR USE OF INFORMA-
TION
IN FURTHERANCE
OF CERTAIN CRIMINAL OF-
FENSES.— 
‘‘(1) Whoever, violates, or attempts to violate, 
subsection (a), (b), or (c) knowing that such infor-
mation may be used in furtherance of, or with the 
intent to commit, an offense described in section 
2261, 2261A, 2262, or any other crime of violence 
shall, in addition to the penalties provided for in 
subsection (a), (b), or (c), be fined under this title 
and imprisoned not more than 5 years. 
‘‘(2) Whoever, violates, or attempts to violate, 
subsection (a), (b), or (c) knowing that such infor-
mation may be used in furtherance of, or with the 
intent to commit, an offense under section 111, 115, 
1114, 1503, 1512, 1513, or to intimidate, threaten, 
harass, injure, or kill any Federal, State, or local 
law enforcement officer shall, in addition to the pen-
alties provided for in subsection (a), (b) or (c), be 
fined under this title and imprisoned not more than 
5 years. 
‘‘(f) EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION.—There is 
extraterritorrial jurisdiction over an offense under this 
section. 
‘‘(g) NONAPPLICABILITY
TO LAW ENFORCEMENT 
AGENCIES.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to pre-
vent, hinder, or otherwise delay the production of con-
fidential phone records information from a covered entity 
upon receipt of a lawful request from a law enforcement 
agency, or any officer, employee, or agent of such agency, 
in accordance with other applicable laws. 
‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) CONFIDENTIAL PHONE RECORDS INFOR-
MATION.—The term ‘confidential phone records in-
formation’ means— 
‘‘(A) information that— 
‘‘(i) relates to the quantity, technical 
configuration, type, destination, location,
or amount of use of a service offered by a 
covered entity subscribed to by any cus-
tomer of that covered entity; and 
‘‘(ii) is made available to a covered 
entity by a customer solely by virtue of the 
relationship between the covered entity and 
the customer; or 
‘‘(B) information contained in any bill, 
itemization, or account statement related to a 
product or service provided by a covered entity 
to any customer of the covered entity. 
‘‘(2) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘covered en-
tity’— 
‘‘(A) has the same meaning given the term 
‘telecommunications carrier’ in section 3 of the 
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153); 
and 
‘‘(B) includes any provider of IP-enabled 
voice service. 
‘‘(3) CUSTOMER.—The term ‘customer’ means, 
with respect to a covered entity, any individual, part-
nership, association, joint stock company, trust, or 
corporation, or authorized representative of such 
customer, to whom the covered entity provides a 
product or service.
‘‘(4) IP-ENABLED VOICE SERVICE.—The term 
‘IP-enabled voice service’ means the provision of 
real-time 2-way voice communications offered to the 
public, or such class of users as to be effectively 
available to the public, transmitted through cus-
tomer premises equipment using TCP/IP protocol, 
or a successor protocol, for a fee (whether part of 
a bundle of services or separately) with 2-way inter-
connection capability such that the service can origi-
nate traffic to, and terminate traffic from, a public 
switched telephone network.’’. 
SEC. 4. SENTENCING GUIDELINES. 
(a) REVIEW AND AMENDMENT.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the United 
States Sentencing Commission, pursuant to its authority 
under section 994 of title 28, United States Code, and 
in accordance with this section, shall review and, if appro-
priate, amend the Federal sentencing guidelines and policy 
statements applicable to persons convicted of any offense 
under section 1039 of title 18, United States Code. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION.—The United States Sentencing 
Commission may amend the Federal sentencing guidelines 
in accordance with the procedures set forth in section 
21(a) of the Sentencing Act of 1987 (28 U.S.C. 994 note)
as though the authority under that section had not ex-
pired. 
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