The landmark case between the Justice Department and Microsoft, which hit the Supreme Court Tuesday, will have major implications for the U.S. government’s access to data and the way that tech companies function around the world today, says Steven Overly, tech reporter at Politico.
“Microsoft is arguing that we’re basically legislating current day technology based on decades-old law,” he says.
“What they really want is to see our laws updated so that it better addresses the technology that we all use today.” For that, Microsoft wants Congress -- not the courts -- to deliberate on the future of data protection.
The case revolves around emails stored in a data center in Ireland. A search warrant in 2013 demanded that Microsoft hand over access to those files because they were pertinent to a drug investigation. Officials cited a 1986 law -- the Stored Communications Act (SCA) -- that was written back before email and international data centers were the norm.
Microsoft refused the warrant, arguing emails stored overseas are beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. warrants in the same way that physical information overseas would be, explains Overly.
“We need 21st century laws to protect 21st century technology,” said Brad Smith, President and Chief Legal Officer at Microsoft, on Tuesday.
“There is only one institution in this country that can balance all of the careful nuances that need to be considered, and that is...the United States Congress,” added Smith.
The case could also have direct consequences for the consumer, Overly told Cheddar.
“What does this mean for how our own government accesses our information and how foreign governments access our information?” he asked.
A ruling in the case is expected in June.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/breaking-down-the-u-s-vs-microsoft-supreme-court-case).
Joe Cecela, Dream Exchange CEO, explains how they are aiming to form the first minority-controlled company to operate an exchange in U.S. history. Watch!
A Michigan judge is putting sponges in the hands of shoplifters and ordering them to wash cars in a Walmart parking lot when spring weather arrives. Genesee County Judge Jeffrey Clothier hopes the unusual form of community service discourages people from stealing from Walmart. The judge also wants to reward shoppers with free car washes. Clothier says he began ordering “Walmart wash” sentences this week for shoplifting at the store in Grand Blanc Township. He believes 75 to 100 people eventually will be ordered to wash cars this spring. Clothier says he will be washing cars alongside them when the time comes.
The State Department had been in talks with Elon Musk’s Tesla company to buy armored electric vehicles, but the plans have been put on hold by the Trump administration after reports emerged about a potential $400 million purchase. A State Department spokesperson said the electric car company owned by Musk was the only one that expressed interest back in May 2024. The deal with Tesla was only in its planning phases but it was forecast to be the largest contract of the year. It shows how some of his wealth has come and was still expected to come from taxpayers.
At 100 years old, the Goodyear Blimp is an ageless star in the sky. The 246-foot-long airship will be in the background of the Daytona 500 — flying roughly 1,500 feet above Daytona International Speedway, actually — to celebrate its greatest anniversary tour. Even though remote camera technologies are improving regularly and changing the landscape of aerial footage, the blimp continues to carve out a niche. At Daytona, with the usual 40-car field racing around a 2½-mile superspeedway, views from the blimp aptly provide the scope of the event.
You'll just have to wait for interest rates (and prices) to go down. Plus, this deal's a steel, the big carmaker wedding is off, and bribery is back, baby!
