The CLOUD Act Is a Disaster for Privacy and Advocates Are Pissed
March 24, 2018 by William Peaster 0 Comment 5120 Views
In the face of a potential government shutdown, the United States has just passed an omnibus spending bill. The problem? Thousands of pages into the bill, the so-called CLOUD Act was slyly embedded with no opportunity for true debate. Detractors are saying the troubling legislation mismanages power and eviscerates the privacy guarantees provided by the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Thought leaders in crypto and beyond are sounding off accordingly.
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‘Dangerous Legislation’
The CLOUD Act — short for the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act — has been signed into law upon President Trump’s signing of its Senate-approved parent omnibus spending bill.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has called the CLOUD Act, originally sponsored by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), a “dangerous piece of legislation” that could open the floodgates for new, systemic abuses of privacy the world over.
The legislation would allow foreign nations to collect data from U.S. companies without the need for a warrant, among other measures that seemingly erode privacy measures across the board.
BREAKING: The Senate, by voting 65-32 to approve an omnibus government spending bill, has also approved a dangerous cross-border data bill called the CLOUD Act. This bad bill, which was attached to the spending bill, will erode data privacy protections around the world.
— EFF (@EFF) March 23, 2018
The passing of the act comes on the heels of the recent privacy zeitgeist and public outrage over reports alleging U.K. data science firm Cambridge Analytica harvested millions of Facebook users’ data to facilitate microtargeting for propagandistic electioneering.
Detractors Are Sounding Off Loud and Clear
Privacy advocates are not happy, to say the least. In the political sphere, the Senate’s resident Libertarian maverick Rand Paul (R-TN) lobbied against the bill over the past few days.
“Congress should reject the CLOUD Act because it fails to protect human rights or Americans’ privacy…gives up their constitutional role, and gives far too much power to the attorney general, the secretary of state, the president and foreign governments.” https://t.co/pEv4z88lDY
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 22, 2018
In the crypto space, which is already crawling with hyper-private cypherpunks, many thought leaders decried the act in the strongest possible terms. Bitcoin and cryptocurrency scholar Andreas Antonopoulos for one told the community it was time to “Go dark.”
The CLOUD Act passed. It destroys privacy globally, so it had to be snuck into the $1.3 trillion omnibus without debate.
Encrypt. Encrypt. Encrypt. Go Dark.
When privacy is criminalized, only criminals have privacy. We got sold out, again. pic.twitter.com/Ms5bm1opBo
— Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) March 23, 2018
Antonopoulos went on to say concerned citizens should donate to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who he asserted led a vocal resistance against the CLOUD Act:
As far as I can tell, the EFF was the only organization that was being vocal about the abominable CLOUD Act that just passed.
Now, more than ever – DONATE, JOIN, SUPPORT:https://t.co/uVbrZd2iLf
— Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) March 23, 2018
There are ways to protect yourself going forward, though. Some might consider the suggestions in the following Twitter thread, for example. As the saying goes, if you need something done, you have to do it yourself.
If you care about your privacy,
You should consider this:1. Do not use Dropbox. Use @SpiderOak instead. Zero-knowledge, encrypted storage.
2. Do not use Gmail (or the like),
Use @ProtonMail or Countermail.
PGP (control of own keys on latter.) 2FA, keyfiles, etc.#opsec— ＬＥＯＮ (@cryptoHITMAN) March 8, 2018
What’s your take? Will the CLOUD Act affect your cybersecurity practices going forward? Sound off in the comments below.
Images via WSJ, NBC
