Back on Thursday, July 24, 2014, Microsoft found itself in federal court in New York. They challenged the federal government over forcing tech companies giving them emails in international data centers.
The battle started in December 2013. Federal officials gave Microsoft a search warrant requesting Microsoft turn over emails of a certain person over an illegal drug investigation. The emails they were after were stored in Dublin, Ireland. Microsoft has a data center there and it serves international customers. Microsoft believes a US search warrant shouldn’t be valid beyond the US border. Government officials argue emails in a cloud belong less to you and more to the cloud/business provider. Business records have lower protection than personal records do. And because of this, some government officials say it has authority to get emails worldwide.
This is where my cynicism kicks in. I’m not disputing the law. And I believe in safety and justice. So if this person is in illegal drugs, they need to be brought to justice…in a legal and ethical way. But I wonder if this is just an excuse to spy and snoop. Ever hear of the phrase, ‘You give and inch, you take a mile’? Is this is an excuse for the US government to read emails around the world? I’m not giving Microsoft a medal of honor either. This is a business move. They know 83% of American voters believe cloud info deserve the same protection as paper info. Do you think Microsoft would be fighting this hard if only 38% of American voters Who will win this argument: the US or Microsoft?