The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, traveled to Silicon Valley to meet with top internet industry leaders to discuss a new proposal to make it simpler to conduct wiretaps on Internet users.

Facebook and Google were among the top companies, with whom Director Mueller met on his trip.

The proposal would expand upon a 1994 law, the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, and impose regulations on Internet companies. Currently, Internet service providers are required to immediately respond to wiretap orders. This is not true for Internet companies, and this new proposal would change that entirely.

Some, including the Commerce Department, feel that this could hurt innovation and, by extension, hurt the US innovation-driven economy.