Appeals Court upholds judgement on US siezing data from overseas servers
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A US appeals court has upheld a ruling that Microsoft can't be forced to give the Department of Justice access to customer emails stored outside the country.
In a 4-4 split, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals declined to reconsider its July decision denying the DOJ access to the emails of a drug trafficking suspect stored on a Microsoft server in Ireland.
The court had ruled that the Stored Communications Act (SCA) didn't cover searches outside the US, which should instead be handled through an existing mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT).
However, the court noted in its decision that the rather ancient SCA had been overtaken by technology: "It is overdue for a congressional revision that would continue to protect privacy but would more effectively balance concerns of international comity with law enforcement needs and service provider obligations in the global context in which this case arose," wrote Judge Susan Carney.
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The argument here has been should a law which has been around 'forever' and not designed to effect services outside of a local region, still effect the user / supplier of services.
And I kind of agree, update your laws. Do the job you're there for. You (congress and company) are there to develop fair laws that protect and serve the country (and our neighbors) equally. Which means you need to draft laws which can be updated with technology. Granted there is going to be backlash on it, but that is why you were hired.
To sort it out, and find a good solution.
