Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wotan!moxie!texsun!newstop!sun-barr!apple!bionet!turbo.bio.net!lear From: lear@turbo.bio.net (Eliot) Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk Subject: Re: e-mail privacy Message-ID: Date: 2 Mar 91 03:02:06 GMT References: <13628@life.ai.mit.edu> Organization: GenBank Computing Resource for Mol. Biology Lines: 35 In referenced articlerkan@mole.ai.mit.edu (R. Kan) wonders if it's legally ok for his system administrators to snoop in his mail. I'm no lawyer, but I did follow the goings on with the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 a little. There are, as I understand it, two things going against you in this case: [1] In terms of breaches of privacy, ECPA makes explicit exemption for service providers from just about any form of prosecution so long as they do not divulge any information, even if that your mail file falls under ECPA, and that you are being provide a service). [2] They told you that they were going to do so. Therefore you do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy, so your chances of actually pushing forward on the privacy issue are considerably diminished, as I understand it. Apparently this is common law. On these two points perhaps an enlightened member of the bar might wish to make a comment (Mike)? There is, I understand it, one thing going for you in this case: [1] Didn't MIT have some big internal stink about what thou shalt and shalt not do with mail files? It's possible that your system administrators are violating some internal policy. I refer you to Jeff Schiller for more details on that question (jis@mit.edu). -- Eliot Lear [lear@turbo.bio.net]