Tech Appeals Judge Rules Feds Can?t Make Microsoft Yield Customer Emails Stored Overseas

[Bladewire]

I'm not sure which is more disturbing, that emails are stored in Ireland and subject to their laws or that Microsoft doesn't want feds accessing emails for criminal investigations.

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Software giant Microsoft won a federal appeal against the U.S. government on Thursday. A three-judge panel ruled that the company doesn?t have to turn over customer emails stored overseas. The decision overturns a judge from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, who held Microsoft in civil contempt ?for its failure to comply? with a warrant.

Judge Susan Carney wrote the majority opinion:

We therefore decide that the District Court lacked authority to enforce the Warrant against Microsoft. Because Microsoft has complied with the Warrant?s domestic directives and resisted only its extraterritorial aspects, we REVERSE the District Court?s denial of Microsoft?s motion to quash, VACATE its finding of civil contempt, and REMAND the cause with instructions to the District Court to quash the 7 Warrant insofar as it directs Microsoft to collect, import, and produce to the government customer content stored outside the United States.

Judges said the Stored Communications Act didn?t empower the government to make its initial demand. The feds got a warrant to make Microsoft hand over customer emails stored on a server in Ireland, but Microsoft resisted. Their fight went to U.S. District Court in 2014, where the company lost. FULL STORY