Microsoft’s right to avoid letting US law enforcement search through data on a foreign server has been upheld. A federal appeals court agreed with the earlier July 2016 ruling, which specifically dealt with a Microsoft server in Dublin.
Law enforcement wanted access to the server as part of a narcotics investigation. Microsoft refused to provide access, leading to the court case.
From the company’s perspective, warrants issued in the US cannot be applied to servers in other countries.
After the initial ruling, the US government tried to get the decision overturned, but the 2nd Circuit US Court of Appeals in Manhattan agreed with the earlier decision.
The Department of Justice disagrees with the ruling and believes more US companies will end up storing data overseas to place it beyond the reach of authorities.
