Law enforcement officials, legal experts and industry representatives testified about a computer program called ‘Carnivore’ that would allow the FBI to intercept and collect electronic communications that are the subject of court orders. Mr. Kerr and other officials said that the program would be a useful tool for agents and reassured members that privacy would not be an issue since any collection of evidence would be subject to the same rules imposed by wire tapping statutes. Critics feared that the program was too powerful and could be used to conduct broad surveilance.