14 DAY TRIAL // Google is fighting against a new proposal made by the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure at the request of the Department of Justice, which could in the end allow the United States to spy on any computer in the world easily.
Google says (PDF viewer required) that the Advisory Committee is trying to change the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41 which does not allow a federal judge to issue search warrants outside its district, pointing out that, if the changes get the go-ahead, they could have serious consequences not only on those living in the United States but pretty much everyone who uses the Internet.
Specifically, the new rule would allow the United States government to easily obtain a warrant for a remote search of any device if the target location is what the official documents describe as “concealed through technological means.”
“The implications of this expansion of warrant power are significant,” Google says.
Changes needed to fight against botnets and hackers
The changes that the Advisory Committee is trying to introduce could be helpful when trying to shut down botnets or track down hackers, but the Mountain View-based company warns that the United States could thus get access to any computer, no matter if it's located in the United States or not.
Users' privacy would thus be at risk, the company says, pointing out that customers such as banks, online retailers, and communications providers relying on VPNs to remain anonymous when doing a number of tasks, such as performing transactions, would thus be exposed.
“The proposed change does not define what a ‘remote search’ is or under what circumstances and conditions a remote search can be undertaken; it merely assumes such searches, whatever they may be, are constitutional and otherwise legal,” Google said, explaining that the changes would give the US the right to remotely search a computer not only in the US but in the whole world.
In the end, Google warns that there's absolutely no mention in the proposed rules that would prevent the United States from searching any computer, no matter its location, and asks the Congress to carefully analyze this new set of laws because “they entertain a dramatic change to electronic surveillance rules.”
In most of the cases, Google was never alone in the fight for user privacy in the United States and other large tech companies, such as Microsoft, also joined the effort to prevent the government from accessing user data beyond the borders.
This time, Microsoft hasn't yet issued a statement on the new rules, but an official comment on this should be provided soon.