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US Spending Bill Contains CLOUD Act, a Win For Tech and Law Enforcement (axios.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the omnibus-bills dept.

The 2,232 page spending bill released Wednesday by House and Senate leaders includes the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data [CLOUD] Act, which provides a legal framework for law enforcement to request data from overseas servers. The CLOUD Act currently sits high atop the wish list of tech firms, law enforcement and even foreign nations. Axios reports: The Supreme Court is currently mulling a case determining whether the Department of Justice had the right to force Microsoft to produce client emails stored on a server in Ireland without permission from Ireland's government. Microsoft fears the DOJ will force it to violate the laws of Ireland. The DOJ hopes to avoid the often years long process of abiding by treaties dealing with evidence. But both have publicly urged lawmakers to render the pending decision moot by passing the CLOUD act, a way to streamline the treaty process for requesting digital data.

The CLOUD Act provides a framework for reciprocal treaties for nations to request data from computers located within each other's borders. It also provides a mechanism for a Microsoft to take a law enforcement demand to court if it would force them to violate another country's rules. But when neither apply, law enforcement will be able to demand files in accordance with U.S. law.

6 of 116 comments (clear)

  1. Reaction from abroad by Opportunist · · Score: 2, Insightful

    And why again do you think your laws apply here?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    1. Re:Reaction from abroad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      What are you going to do? Invade Ireland? Nah, the US doesn't push around European nations using military strength. It would be possible, of course, but very inefficient compared to pushing them around using economic strength.

  2. Both EFF and ACLU think CLOUD act is a bad idea by ccady · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Both the EFF (https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/03/new-backdoor-around-fourth-amendment-cloud-act) and the ACLU (https://www.aclu.org/blog/privacy-technology/consumer-privacy/proposed-cloud-act-would-let-bad-foreign-governments-demand) think the CLOUD act is a bad idea.

    --
    J'aime mieux les méchants que les imbéciles, parce qu'ils se reposent. -- Alexandre Dumas
  3. An opposite take by Cigaes · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This article seems quite positive about the CLOUD act.

    The Electronic Frontier Foundation has quite a different take: The CLOUD Act: A Dangerous Expansion of Police Snooping on Cross-Border Data.

    Is /. written for the benefit of law enforcement and big tech business or for nerds?

  4. Another Democracy fail by thegarbz · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why is the CLOUD act part of a spending bill rather than a separate document? Are you unable to pass laws these days without threatening a government shutdown?

    Maybe it's time the USA stopped exporting democracy and started importing it from those countries who haven't lost their way.

  5. Re:A poison pill for US companies? by Kernel+Kurtz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I am having trouble understanding how this wouldnt be a poison pill for us companies. If this act is made into law and then used, would it not over time lead people in other countries to garner mis-trust in US Corporations?

    This. The lesson here is that simply having your data stored overseas won't help you keep it private, the US will not respect foreign laws.

    If you care about such things, you simply should not do business with a US company.