In a last minute decision, an addition to the the Homeland Security bill will permit the US government to impose life imprisonment for hackers whose activities put the lives and well being of others at risk.

During 11th hour closed-door negotiations, the House of Representatives' Republican leadership inserted a 16-page Cyber Security Enhancement Act (CSEA) into the Bill, which has been approved by the House in a 299 to 121 vote.

The CSEA allows law enforcement officers to tap telephone and Internet transmissions without first obtaining a court order. It may also impose life sentences for hackers who "recklessly" endanger lives.

Major sources of concern are transportation and medical facilities who have been targets of Internet hackers in the past with nearly disasterous results due to the large number of people involved.

The bill would also allow federal agencies to withhold information that would be otherwise obtainable through the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA).

Civil liberties groups such as the Electronic Privacy Information Center, otherwise known as EPIC, are heavily protesting some of the provisions within the bill, stating they represent a clear and present threat to the freedoms and rights of the country's population.