Microsoft withdraws threat to whistle blower site
By Ria Sharma

United States based whistle blowing website Cryptome has been operating for 14 years and has published many secret documents that Governments and powerful corporations wanted to keep out of the public eye. Despite threats from some FBI agents, big business and a legal notice from Yahoo, it survived and soldiered on.

On Feb 25, I had reported on how Microsoft lawyers had wrongly used copyright of its internal document ‘Global Criminal Compliance Handbook’ as an excuse to force Cryptome to remove this harmless document from its website.  What was worse was Cryptome’s hosting company and domain registrar Network Solutions locking out the whistle blowing site within 24 hours of the notice from the software giant.  Network Solutions did not even wait for a Judge and Court to decide the merits of the complaint. It put a legal lock on Cryptome and took it offline.

The resulting public outcry against the Microsoft lawyer and Network Solutions has forced both to backtrack. The Microsoft lawyer wrote to Network Solutions

“
I am outside counsel to Microsoft Corporation. I am writing to confirm my telephone message left with your nighttime operator at 7:45 PST this evening to withdraw Microsoft's takedown request with respect to the file available at http://cryptome.org which is the subject of the correspondence below.

While Microsoft has a good faith belief that the distribution of the file that was made available at that address infringes Microsoft's copyrights, it was not Microsoft's intention that the takedown request result in the disablement of web access to the entire cryptome.org website on which the file was made available.

Accordingly, on behalf of Microsoft, I am hereby withdrawing the takedown request and asking that Network Solutions restore internet access to http: cryptome.org as soon as possible.
“

With Microsoft withdrawing its complaint, cryptome.org is back with a copy of the ‘secret’ document.  Have a look yourself to see there is nothing secret about this document as it merely frames policies and procedures followed by all tech companies when assisting legal authorities.

Senior Microsoft managers have to be credited for realizing the errors of junior staff and resolving the issue in a day.

(Techgoss had published the following article on Feb 25, 2010)

Microsoft shuts whistle blower site
By Ria Sharma

United States based whistle blowing website Cryptome has been operating for 14 years and has published many secret documents that Governments and powerful corporations wanted to keep out of the public eye. Despite threats from some FBI agents, big business and a legal notice from Yahoo, it survived and soldiered on.

No longer.  Yesterday, technology giant Microsoft claiming copyright violation of an internal document, forced Cryptome’s hosting company Network Solutions to shut it down.

And what is this ‘secret’ document that Microsoft claims copyright of?  It is an internal Microsoft document titled ‘Global Criminal Compliance Handbook’ which lists the processes and degree of co-operation offered to law enforcement agencies.  Note that this co-operation between Microsoft and law enforcement agencies has been cleared by Government and Courts.  In that sense, everything is above board. CISCO feels so comfortable with such court authorized cooperation that it has publicly posted its own policies on the internet.  What is the need to hide such legal cooperation?

Microsoft should have known better than to take such an aggressive approach to intimidating Cryptome.  It used Copyright as an excuse when it is clear that such copyright violations will not harm Microsoft’s commercial interests.  And that this is not even a copyright violation in the true sense of the word.  What is worse is that the hosting company Network Solutions gave Cryptome only 24 hours to take down the Microsoft document before shutting down the website and putting a legal lock on it.  Why did Network Solutions not wait for a Judge and Court to make such a decision?

Not surprisingly, the actions by Microsoft and hosting company Network Solutions have backfired.  International media has picked up the story and focused on the illegal and ham fisted way Cryptome was shut down.  Powerful computing magazine Wired has even published a copy of the Microsoft document which it did not want the world to see.  Microsoft has realized that it cannot threaten Wired and so it not moving against it.

Cryptome itself is up and running at a new site.  Ironically, it has been strengthened by Microsoft’s legal threat.

I have read the document and there is nothing in it that most tech companies are not already doing.  Or should do.  The only thing really relevant to Indians in this document was that if there is a terror threat, kidnapping or murder in India, our police will have to deal directly with Microsoft USA rather than Microsoft India because all user information is stored in America.

If Microsoft had not sent its legal letter only a few thousand people would have read the document and turned their attention to other things.  Today, millions of people have seen the document and some are angry with the software giant for overplaying its hand.