Mediaboss Marketing

Michael Flynn,National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, attends a press conference on Feb. 10, 2017 in the East Room of the White House. Jim Lo Scalzo / EPA file

When intelligence agencies are surveilling the electronic communications of foreign individuals and come across a U.S. citizen, either as a name mentioned during a monitored conversation or as a participant in the conversation, the identities of the U.S. citizens are protected. Their names are normally redacted in intelligence reports.

Related:

The identities can be "unmasked," or revealed, however, to a small group of government officials with the proper clearance if they request unmasking.

Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes, R.-Calif., recused himself from the Russia probe after it was revealed that he had a secret meeting at the White House with an official who provided him with information about unmasking. He is still signing the committes's subpoenas, however.

The other four subpoenas issued by the House Intel Committee Wednesday were for former Trump National Security Adviser Mike Flynn and his company, Flynn Intel Group LLC, and for President Trump's longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and his firm, Michael D. Cohen & Associates.

Related:

Committee chairman Rep. Devin Nunes, R.-Calif., has recused himself from the Russia probe, but is still signing the subpoenas.

"As part of our ongoing investigation into Russian active measures during the 2016 campaign, today we approved subpoenas for several individuals for testimony, personal documents and business records," said committee member Rep. Mike Conaway, R-Texas, and ranking member Rep. Adam Schiff, D.-Calif. "We hope and expect that anyone called to testify or provide documents will comply with that request, so that we may gain all the information within the scope of our investigation. We will continue to pursue this investigation wherever the facts may lead."

Excerpt from:
House Subpoenas Flynn, Cohen, and Unmasking Requests by Obama Trio - NBCNews.com