Q: Does Microsoft notify users through its consumer services, such as Outlook.com, when law enforcement or another U.S. government agency requests their information? A: In the second half of 2021, Microsoft received 120 requests from law enforcement agencies worldwide for accounts linked to enterprise cloud customers (defined as customers who purchased more than 50 licenses). In 65 cases, these requests were denied, withdrawn, no data or law enforcement was successfully transmitted to the client. In 55 cases, Microsoft was compelled to provide reactive information: in 29 of these cases, certain customer content had to be exposed, and in 26 cases, we were forced to disclose only information unrelated to the content. The result will vary depending on whether the reported content violates Twitter`s Terms of Service or Rules, or whether it is allegedly illegal in a particular jurisdiction but does not violate Twitter`s Terms of Service or Rules. Q: Are legal claims subject to non-disclosure orders included in your reports? What is Lumen and how does it relate to Twitter and removal requests? How we respond to a request depends on your Google service provider – for most of our services this is either Google LLC, a US company incorporated under US law, or Google Ireland Limited, an Irish company incorporated under Irish law. To find out which service provider is your service provider, read Google`s Terms of Service or check with your account administrator to see if your Google Account is managed by an organization. Below is a step-by-step guide that describes the lifecycle of a typical legal request to Twitter. A: Yes. Microsoft will notify users in advance whose data is requested by law enforcement or other government agency, unless prohibited by law. We may refuse notification in exceptional circumstances, such as in emergency situations where notification could result in danger (e.g., Child Exploitation Investigations) or where notification would be counterproductive (e.g., if the user`s account has been hacked).
Microsoft will also notify users late after a valid and enforceable privacy order expires, unless Microsoft believes, in its sole discretion, that the notification could result in danger to identifiable individuals or groups or be counterproductive. For more information about the types of legal proceedings required to obtain certain types of account information, please see the “Types of Legal Proceedings” section of our Transparency Report and Twitter`s Law Enforcement Guidelines. Q: What is the process for disclosing client information in response to government legal requirements? If content that has been withheld in response to a legal request is permitted in the future, we will, where possible, restore access to it so that everyone can see it. Preliminary review A Twitter agent first reviews the legal request to determine if it meets the relevant legal requirements. If the request meets all relevant legal requirements, a Twitter agent will review the reported account or tweets to indicate that the request is to restrict or restrict free speech. raises other concerns about Twitter`s policies (for example, journalists` accounts, verified accounts or political speech accounts); or raises practical or technical concerns (for example, if the account or content in question is no longer available). During this stage, Twitter may ask the requester for additional context before considering a reactive disclosure, taking action on the account, or postponing the request in its entirety due to various circumstances (e.g., Type of underlying crime, the request is too broad, the requirement does not have a required signature, content request with the wrong legal procedure). A: No. The CLOUD Act amends U.S. law to clarify that law enforcement agencies can compel U.S.-based service providers to disclose data in their possession, custody, or control, regardless of where the data resides. However, this law does not change the legal and data protection provisions that previously applied to law enforcement requests for data, and these safeguards continue to apply. Microsoft adheres to the same principles and customer commitments regarding regulatory requests for user data.
A: Governments play a crucial role in ensuring public safety. Microsoft has a team that works around the clock to respond quickly when government requests are legal and valid. Before modern technology, governments had legal ways to access people`s personal data, and this is still true today. At the same time, we believe our clients deserve to be prejudiced about how and when the government can access their data, and that it should be up to national laws and agreed human rights standards – not the discretion of a company – to determine where the line is drawn. By only responding to valid legal process, we strive to give our customers clear expectations about what happens to their data. Google LLC sometimes receives requests for disclosure of data from government agencies outside the United States. If we receive any of these requests, we may provide user information if it meets all of the following conditions: Q: Does Microsoft share data with government agencies without a formal legal request? A: As our reports on enforcement requests have shown, the vast majority of requests are for information related to our free consumer services. In comparison, we received very few requests for data related to the use of our commercial services used by business clients. A: Our World Declaration of Human Rights underscores our commitment to respect the human rights of our clients. By verifying that law enforcement agencies have complied with the laws and procedures of their jurisdiction before responding to a request, we try to ensure that we only disclose customer data in the course of authorized criminal investigations.
Submission Process A legal request for Twitter account information is first submitted to Twitter via email, mail, fax or our legal request site (LRS; t.co/lr) to law enforcement, a government agency, a lawyer representing a criminal defendant or a civil litigant. Q: How many legal claims in the U.S. were accompanied by non-disclosure orders? If a non-governmental party requests Customer Data, they must follow the applicable legal process, i.e. they must provide us with a valid subpoena or court order for the content or subscriber information or other data unrelated to the content. For content requests, we require the explicit legal consent of the account holder, and for all requests, we will notify the account holder, unless prohibited by law. We require that all requests be targeted to specific accounts and identifiers. Microsoft`s compliance team reviews civil requests for user data to ensure they are valid, rejects invalid requests, and provides only the data specified in the jurisdiction. A summary of Microsoft`s responses to civil customer data requests is included in the transparency reports we publish every six months. What types of account information can be created in response to a valid legal request? In the second half of 2021, Microsoft received 5,601 legal requests for consumer data from law enforcement agencies in the United States. We may also publish information similar to your notice to our transparency report, which includes data about requests we receive from copyright owners and governments to remove information from our products. A: Sometimes. Under U.S.
law, Microsoft may seek reimbursement of costs associated with satisfying a valid legal claim. We charge only to cover certain costs related to compliance with U.S. legal requirements. To be clear, these refunds only cover a portion of the costs we actually incur to comply with legal orders.