Which capability was dissolved by the Freedom Act of 2015? A. The ability of the American Civil Liberties Union to defend the rights of those accused of terrorism
B. The ability of FISA courts to appoint advocates to represent the public’s interest in cases that involve significant legal issues
C. The ability of private companies to disclose the number of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) requests they receive
D. The NSA’s ability for mass data collection based on variables like geographic area or area code
The correct answer is D. The NSA’s ability for mass data collection based on variables like geographic area or area code.
Explanation: The USA Freedom Act of 2015 specifically aimed to reform certain aspects of the NSA’s surveillance practices by ending the bulk collection of telephone metadata. This means that the NSA could no longer gather large volumes of data based on geographic location or area codes without specific court orders, moving toward more targeted data collection methods instead.