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updated 10:20 AM UTC, Dec 13, 2023

Major Win For Microsoft In ‘Free For All’ Data Case

BBC: The U.S. government cannot force Microsoft to give authorities access to the firm’s servers located in other countries, a court has ruled.

The decision is being seen as a precedent for protecting the privacy of cloud computing services.

The US Department of Justice had wanted to access a server in Ireland, as part of an investigation into a drugs case.

The ruling, made by an appeals court, overturns an order granted by a court in Manhattan in 2014.

The DoJ said it was disappointed by the decision and was considering what it would do next. If it appeals, the case would then move to the US Supreme Court.

Microsoft said it welcomed the ruling.

“This decision provides a major victory for the protection of people’s privacy rights under their own laws rather than the reach of foreign governments,” the company said.

“It makes clear that the U.S. Congress did not give the U.S. Government the authority to use search warrants unilaterally to reach beyond U.S. borders.

“As a global company we’ve long recognized that if people around the world are to trust the technology they use, they need to have confidence that their personal information will be protected by the laws of their own country.”

The company thanked the companies that had backed its appeal, which included the likes of Amazon, Apple and Cisco.

No bullying

Another of Microsoft’s backers was the Open Rights Group, a UK-based organisation that campaigns for digital rights.

“The US Court’s decision has upheld the right to individual privacy in the face of the US State’s intrusion into personal liberty,” the group’s legal director Myles Jackman said on Thursday.

“As a consequence, US law enforcement agencies must respect European citizens’ digital privacy rights and the protection of their personal data.

“States should not arbitrarily reach across borders just because they feel they can bully companies into doing so.”

Microsoft had warned that allowing the search warrant to be conducted could open up a global privacy “free for all”. Other countries, the company said, would perhaps seek to apply their own search warrants to servers located in the US.

Echoing a constant concern of those in tech industry, Microsoft said the laws were simply too outdated to be effective.

“The protection of privacy and the needs of law enforcement require new legal solutions that reflect the world that exists today – rather than technologies that existed three decades ago when current law was enacted.”

Safe havens

But there is continued concern in the law enforcement community that cloud storage, together with encryption, is providing something of a safe haven for criminals.

Judge Susan Carney ruled against the DoJ on the basis that the Stored Communications Act of 1986 limited the reach of warrants applicable outside the US. She noted that such restrictions were vital to maintaining good relations with other nations.

Furthermore, she said there were mechanisms available for co-operation between countries in investigations – though law enforcement agencies often complain that this route is more expensive and time-consuming.

Another judge involved in the ruling, Gerard Lynch, said the 1986 law was in urgent need of an update.

“I concur in the result,” he wrote. “But without any illusion that the result should even be regarded as a rational policy outcome, let alone celebrated as a milestone in protecting privacy.”

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