Law-Forums.org

[ricki]

So both postal mail and to some extent electronic mail are protected from being snooped upon by third parties without some sort of legal search order. My question is, does the same protection at any level extend to private messages on a private online site/forum? If so, can anyone point me to the laws covering this?
Thanks.

[osbourne]

Apparently you are not familiar with the Patriot Act.

You can't expect ANYTHING on line to be personal. NOTHING.

[hampton83]

Apparently you are not familiar with the Patriot Act.

You can't expect ANYTHING on line to be personal. NOTHING.

The privacy of your online site/forum is regulated by the particular "privacy policy" that you agreed to when you became a member of the site. Obviously, if other members are allowed to see your postings, like the one you're reading right now, there is no expectation of any privacy. Less obviously, if you register with your real name and address and your online activity is suspected of violating criminal laws, no privacy policy will prevent law enforcement from obtaining a subpoena for that information from your online host.