Washington – If the FBI has started a file on you, it won’t release it without your written consent.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
“Requests for information about another living person should be accompanied by evidence of the subject’s consent,” the agency states on its website.
FBI officials may release files that mention your name if they’re related to a closed investigation or the release is specifically authorized by law.
And you can always request agency files on any deceased person, including the famous and the infamous. The form for making such requests is available on the FBI website at www.fbi.gov/foia/requesting-fbi-records.
There’s a different form for inquiries about organizations, businesses, historical events, incidents or investigations. Those requests cane be made electronically at www.fbi.gov/foia/efoia-request-form.
Response time depends on the size of the file.
“If there’s no record, it’s a faster turnaround,” FBI spokesman Bill Carter said.
This has been the official policy pretty much for decades.