U.S. Courts to Publish Spyware Wiretap Data Starting in 2029

U.S. courts will begin publishing data showing how often judges authorise law enforcement to use spyware and hacking tools to intercept people’s communications in real time, adding a new measure of transparency around government surveillance.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts plans to begin tracking a new “spyware/hacking” category in its 2028 Wiretap Report, which will be published in 2029. The figures will cover hacking techniques used for wiretapping, including tools that allow authorities to intercept calls and messages in real time.

Spyware data will be added to annual wiretap reports

The federal judiciary has published annual Wiretap Reports for years, documenting the number of wiretaps federal and state judges approve. The reports include information such as where surveillance occurred, the types of crimes under investigation and the methods used to intercept communications.

Existing categories cover audio wiretaps used to capture phone calls, oral surveillance involving microphones or other listening devices, and electronic interception of messages such as texts and emails as they travel through communications networks.

The new category will separately identify wiretaps conducted using hacking tools or spyware, which federal authorities sometimes describe as network investigative techniques, or NITs.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts said its reporting systems must first be updated before the additional information can appear in the annual report.

"The Wiretap Report is compiled from individual forms submitted from throughout the country and throughout the year. Before the new data can appear in the annual report, reporting forms and procedures need to be updated to accommodate the new categories," a spokesperson said.

The new numbers will not cover every government hack

The reporting change has an important limitation. The statistics will cover spyware used to intercept communications in real time, potentially including calls and messages sent through services such as Signal and WhatsApp. Still, they will not count every instance in which authorities remotely hack a device.

When investigators use a hacking tool to extract information already stored on a phone, such as photos, files or location information, that activity generally falls under a search rather than a wiretap. A different legal process governs those searches and will not be reflected in the new spyware wiretap category.

Wiretaps are subject to stricter legal requirements because they allow investigators to collect communications as they occur continuously. Although they are authorised less frequently than conventional search warrants, a single wiretap can capture communications involving large numbers of people.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has pushed for greater disclosure around electronic surveillance for years and welcomed the decision to publish the additional data.

"The American people remain largely in the dark about the different ways that the government is spying on them," Wyden said. "I am thankful that the federal courts agreed to collect and publish data about hacking, but Congress must go further and pass my Government Surveillance Transparency Act."

Privacy advocates also said the statistics could provide a clearer picture of how extensively U.S. authorities are using hacking tools. Eva Galperin, director of cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said public numbers would make it easier to assess the scale of government spyware deployments and hold agencies accountable for potential abuses.

"Being able to point to a report saying that spyware was used X number of times will help with accountability, especially if it turns out that number is quite high," Galperin said.

Brett Max Kaufman, senior counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union’s Centre for Democracy, described the change as an important step toward greater transparency around government hacking and said the information could contribute to better-informed surveillance policy and law.

The United States will not be the first country to disclose statistics on government use of spyware. Italy, for example, has published figures showing that spyware was used against 4,321 targets in 2023.

For the U.S., the 2029 report will provide the first dedicated public count of court-authorised spyware and hacking used specifically for live communications surveillance, offering a clearer view of a practice that has historically been difficult for the public to measure.