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

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.

Comments

Re:Reaction from abroad

[Opportunist]

Military strength means jack shit if attacking would hurt you more than it hurts your enemy. Going to war with countries like Afghanistan that don't even get noticed on the foreign trade statistics is one thing. Going to war with the likes of Europe or China, even if they were military extremely inferior, would put a dent into the US foreign trade that it would affect the bottom line of so many corporations that your politicians would never get the ok to go forward with something like this.