Network Investigative Technique

Network Investigative Technique, or NIT, is a form of malware (or hacking) employed by the FBI since at least 2002. It is a drive-by download computer program designed to provide access to a computer.

Its usage has raised both Fourth Amendment concerns and jurisdictional issues. The FBI has to date, despite a court order, declined to provide the complete code in a child sex abuse case involving the Tor anonymity network. On May 12 Mozilla filed an amicus curiae brief inasmuch as the FBI's exploit against the Mozilla Firefox web browsers potentially puts millions of users at risk. It asked that the exploit be told to them before it is told to the defendant, thus raising Fifth Amendment issues as well. Also, US District Judge Robert J. Bryan in Tacoma, Washington has ruled that while the defendant in United States v. Michaud has the right to review the code, the government also has the right to keep it secret (two other federal judges in related cases have ruled to suppress evidence found as a result of the NIT); On May 25, 2016, however, he ruled that "For the reasons stated orally on the record, evidence of the NIT., the search warrant issued based on the NIT., and the fruits of that warrant should be excluded and should not be offered in evidence at trial..."

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