OUT WITH THE OLD

Holder: Email Searches Need a Warrant

Supports updating outdated privacy law.

During a grilling by the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee over the suddenly-long list of controversies surrounding the Obama administration, Attorney General Eric Holder confirmed that he supports requiring that the government and law enforcement obtain a warrant to access emails, Facebook messages, and other private Internet correspondence. Privacy advocates have been urging Congress to consider updating the Electronic Communications Privacy Act since it became clear that the 1986 law granting the government access to opened emails via a non-judge-approved subpoena is horribly outdated. Holder’s comment that revamping the law “is something that I think the department will support,” is the first real indication that Congress might actually make a change.