Foreign Data Unsafe From US Patriot Act, Says American Law Firm

natecochrane writes "A prestigious law firm warns non-U.S. businesses their data is unsafe from costly and invasive raids by American law enforcement even if they host their data in their own countries. The wide interpretation of the USA Patriot Act ensures U.S. cops can legally demand data from almost anyone, anywhere for any reason and countries and their citizens are largely powerless to resist. The advice has resonance with the arrest this week of Kim 'Dotcom' on alleged copyright violations in the U.S."

Comments

Re:legally demand

[Anonymous Coward]

They are free to ignore the demands, true.

The article, however, spoke of the conflict of IT companies that had interests in the U.S., who may be forced to obey U.S. law. Specifically, the story is about the privacy commissioner of my province (Alberta) recommending that our government only use companies with no U.S. connections to guarantee the privacy of the data.

That means no American companies, no outsourcing to the U.S., and no data storage in the United States. The U.S. are international lepers in the privacy world and should be avoided at all costs.

Re:legally demand

[rainmouse]

For those interested in this treaty, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extradition_Act_2003 It makes for some outrageous reading.

Re:legally demand

[Baloroth]

Conservatism is about stopping the advancement of progressiveness and liberty, or in extreme cases, to roll it back.

Ah, nope! Might wanna consult a dictionary on that one.

Conservatism (Latin: conservare, "to preserve")[1] is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society.

So by definition, conservatives are opposed to new laws that infringe on existing liberties. Actually, they are opposed to new laws in general.

P.S. Most of the so-called "conservatives" in the US government aren't really conservative.