None of it is new. Only the technology has a changed. For a while, in the early 1990's I worked at a a building in Ottawa Canada, that overlooked another building, which I see in Google Maps, is still there. Which was described as US government installation designed to TAP domestic phone calls within the US. I asked "Why is it here." I was told because they are not allowed to do it on US soil. I was also told that Canada had a similar facility in the USA to spy on Canadians.