Government drops request to bar Facebook from alerting users to searches over political communicatio
Source: Washington Post
By Ann E. Marimow September 13 at 6:15 PM
Prosecutors in D.C. have backed off efforts to prevent Facebook from alerting users when investigators ask to search their political communications. The decision by the U.S. Attorney’s office Wednesday came on the eve of a court hearing that had broad implications for the First Amendment rights of Facebook users and others who are politically active online.
A D.C. appeals court was set to consider Thursday morning whether Facebook had to keep quiet when law enforcement investigators sought access to user information. Major U.S. technology companies and civil liberties groups had sided with Facebook in fighting a court order that would have forced the company to stay mum.
Instead prosecutors on Wednesday — in a joint filing with Facebook — told the D.C. Court of Appeals that the nondisclosure orders they were seeking were no longer necessary. The appeals court promptly called off the planned hearing.
The details of the case at the D.C. Court of Appeals have been sealed, but the timing of the investigation and other references in public court documents suggest the search warrants at issue are connected to protests during President Trump’s inauguration. About 200 people face felony rioting charges related to demonstrations that damaged property and injured police in downtown Washington Jan. 20.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/government-drops-request-to-bar-facebook-from-alerting-users-to-searches-over-political-communications/2017/09/13/2253a7ee-9890-11e7-82e4-f1076f6d6152_story.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
