Book reveals that First Data handed over consumer records to the FBI after 9/11

According to a book called The One Percent Doctrine by Ron Suskind, First Data (a credit card processor and owner of Western Union) turned over their consumer database to the FBI after the September 11 attacks. The Associated Press article mentions:

Suskind wrote that First Data contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation within two days of the Sept. 11 attacks and offered help. Federal agents later checked the last names of terrorists against First Data's records of credit-card transactions at an Omaha, Neb., processing facility, Suskind said.

He also said that Western Union permitted the Central Intelligence Agency to monitor transactions in real time in early 2003.

First Data hasn't verified Suskind's reporting, but what if the story turns out to be true? First Data's release of data could be seen as a patriotic gesture to help law enforcement combat terrorism. It could also be viewed as an egregious violation of consumer privacy laws and the fourth amendment of the Constitution:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Let's start a business ethics debate! What do you think about this story? Did First Data do the right thing? How do you feel about the CIA monitoring your transactions? Share your feedback in the comments section below.