The Justice Department has released new guidelines advising prosecutors to work directly with businesses when they need access to those enterprises’ data, instead of going through cloud service providers.
Neal Suggs, Microsoft vice president and deputy general counsel, wrote in a blog post published Thursday that the guideline also describes practical considerations on the nature of cloud computing and acknowledges complications that may occur when prosecutors seek access to enterprise customer data from service providers.
Suggs added that the new recommendations help assure businesses that they are in control of their cloud-based data.
The guide builds on DOJ policies introduced in October that limits investigators’ use of secrecy orders when demanding enterprise customer data from cloud companies.
Suggs noted that Microsoft support DOJ’s new guidelines and the company will continue to advocate for legislation that would boost legal protections for digital documents and communications.
