Η Microsoft Corp. must hand over emails from its services stored in a data center in Ireland to the US government, a US judge ruled Thursday in a case that has raised concerns from privacy groups and big companies alike technologys.
Microsoft and other US companies have questioned the criminal search warrant for emails, arguing that federal prosecutors can not use their customer's information in foreign countries.
But after a two-hour hearing at New York, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska ruled that the warrant requiring the company to turn over all data to her for inspection is legal, regardless of where it was stored.
"It's a matter of control, and not a matter of where that information comes from," Preska said.
The judge said he would temporarily suspend the order to allow Microsoft to appeal to the 2 US Circuit Court of Appeals.
The case seems to be the first case in which the company infringes a US search warrant seeking data stored abroad.
Η AT&T Inc, η Apple Inc, η Cisco Systems Inc και η Verizon Communications Inc υποστηρίζουν την Microsoft, μαζί με την ομάδα της ιδιωτικής ζωής Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Companies are concerned that they could lose billions of dollars in revenue from foreign competitors if their customers are afraid of their data.
In a statement, Microsoft's chief executive, Brad Smith, said the company would appeal.
Recall that in August last year, the Institute of Informatics and Innovation appreciated that Snowden's revelations could cost in the US cloud computing industry from 22 to 35 billion dollars for the next three years.
