A new report suggests the FBI may have violated the law 40,000 times since the September 11 attacks in its use of the USA PATRIOT Act and other surveillance powers. Documents obtained by the Electronic Frontier Foundation show that from 2001 to 2008, the FBI reported nearly 800 violations of surveillance law and the Constitution. Based on the rate of reporting of violations, the EFF estimates the actual number of FBI violations is much higher. Approximately one-third of the 800 confirmed violations involve National Security Letters, which give the FBI the ability to request information about suspects with little judicial oversight.