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Yahoo! welcomes the decision last week by the Court of Appeal in Belgium, which highlights the importance of local law enforcement authorities following established international protocols when conducting their investigations.

In March 2009, a Belgian Criminal Court entered judgment in a criminal case against Yahoo! Inc. for the failure to disclose user data to Belgian law enforcement authorities. Yahoo! does not have a local subsidiary or a website in Belgium.  More importantly, the Belgian authorities did not follow the recognised legal process when it sought to obtain the user data from Yahoo! Inc., located in the U.S..  An official diplomatic channel exists between the U.S. and Belgium to facilitate appropriate information exchange (set up under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty), but this route was not taken by the Belgian authorities despite our encouragement to do so.

On 30 June 2010, the Belgian Court of Appeal overturned the March 2009 judgment. The Court of Appeal found there was insufficient jurisdiction to bring Yahoo! Inc.’s actions under Belgian telecommunications laws, and Yahoo! Inc. was acquitted of all charges and fines against it.

This judgment is a win for both the privacy of our users and also for common sense in international law enforcement:  the global nature of the internet does not subject companies offering services online – and their customers’ data – to the jurisdiction of every country globally.  We hope this judgment can send a signal to law enforcement authorities to use established legal process in their investigations; following such procedures is the best way to ensure that information gathering for law enforcement is conducted effectively and efficiently, whilst safeguarding data privacy and freedom of expression over the Internet.

By Jen Swallow | Legal Director, Product Compliance EMEA | Albert Yung | Legal Intern | Yahoo! UK