Microsoft action hits Cryptome Web site

The Web site Cryptome, which publishes sensitive corporate and government files, was taken down briefly by its provider after Microsoft complained of copyright infringement over the publication of one of its documents. Cryptome often posts documents detailing the surveillance activities that companies and government agencies perform on behalf of law enforcement officials. These documents, which Cryptome refers to as "lawful spying guides," explain what information companies reveal about its customers when requested by legal authorities. Many of these documents are specifically written for law enforcement officials to guide them on obtaining customer information from a company--what to ask for, how to ask for it, and how to analyze it. After one such document, Microsoft's Surveillance Guide, appeared on the Cryptome Web site, Microsoft asked the site's owner, John Young, to take it down, alleging copyright infringement.