They're Reading Your Mail: Microsoft's ToS, Windows 8 Leak, and Snooping 206
After the recent Windows 8 leak by recently arrrested then-Microsoft employee Alex Kibkalo, Microsoft has tweaked its privacy policies, but also defended reading the email of the French blogger to whom Kibkalo sent the software.
"The blogger in question, who remains unidentified, happened to use Hotmail—the investigation began in 2012 before Hotmail's Outlook.com transition—as his primary email account. So as part of its investigation, Microsoft peeked into the blogger's email account to read that person's correspondence with Kibkalo. ... Microsoft says it was justified in searching the blogger's email account, because it had probable cause to believe Kibkalo was funneling trade secrets to the blogger.The company also pointed out that even with its justification for searching the account, it would have been impossible to gain a court order."
"The legal system wouldn't have let us" seems a strange argument to defend any act of snooping.
Don't store unencrypted email online (Score:5, Insightful)
While this story is crazy, and MS should be spitballed for it... I don't buy that other companies that let your store your data online don't give access to your data to their employee, if only for "debugging and administrative purposes." If you want to store your data online encrypt it.
Scroogled by Microsoft! (Score:5, Insightful)
I fully expect the daft ad men at Microsoft to continue their pathetic ad campaign.
Glass houses and all that.
Re: Bad summary (Score:1, Insightful)
Intruder is saying he already had the right to break into the house. No need to ask for permission.
That's right. He owns the house. And guess what. A landlord can go into your apartment without your permission also.
Re: Bad summary (Score:5, Insightful)
That is not a universal law. In Europe your landlord can not enter the flat without the tenants permission. It is expressly forbidden.
Re: Bad summary (Score:5, Insightful)
A landlord can go into your apartment without your permission also.
Wrong. Except in cases of emergency, he needs your permission. Unlike what some people think, you do get a few rights when you pay for the use of the apartment...
Re:They checked without a warrant (Score:4, Insightful)
> It's not a legal question at all. If you use the service you have accepted their terms and so have given them permission to do this.
That *is* a legal question. If the EULA says: we own your first born, is that so just because you checked a box on a web site? Nope. There are laws governing the reading of email, and Microsoft has to obey those rules like everyone else.
Remember kids... (Score:5, Insightful)
Remember kids...
Do not store incriminating evidence on the servers of the company you're trying to screw.
Re:According to Arrington, Google reads it too (Score:4, Insightful)
All I'm hearing is that these bloggers are incompetent at protecting their sources.
I mean, WTF? Who the hell would imagine it's safe to use a company's services when collecting insider information? I mean the data is on the company's servers, FFS. I bet real spies don't need to be told not to set up a dead drop inside, say, the Capitol rotunda or the FBI headquarters, either.
Protip for any planning to publish dirt on Yahoo: don't use Yahoo mail to collect the information. Not that anyone still uses Yahoo mail anymore...
Re:According to Arrington, Google reads it too (Score:2, Insightful)
What is clear is there no legal recourse. You can't stop paying because you do not pay. I think suing over such a thing would be hard as showing damages would be hard.
I guess this shows the need for a paid encrypted account.
Re: Bad summary (Score:0, Insightful)
It's pretty easy to take the landlord to court, too. Whining online about being victimized without taking any steps to fix the situation is the surest method for continuing to be victimized.
Re: Bad summary (Score:1, Insightful)
I doubt that. The law in America is that the landlord's demand to enter must be reasonable, and he must you adequate notice (usually 24-48hours in advance if its foreseeable). And if you have reasonable reason to refuse his entry at the time (e.g. you're naked), that's okay too, but you can't unreasonably prevent him from entering assuming he met the first two criteria.
If the landlord needs to upgrade the piping in the building, you can't prevent him. And I'd bet you bottom dollar the same is true in Europe or anywhere else. Any other rule is patently stupid.