SEP 15, 2015 | US
BSA | The Software Alliance Calls for ECPA Reform in September 16th Senate Testimony
WASHINGTON — September 16, 2015 — In testimony today before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Victoria Espinel, President and CEO of BSA | The Software Alliance, urged Committee members to support efforts to update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) by adopting legislation that better reflects today’s technological reality. Espinel pressed Congress to address issues emerging now, specifically those related to demands by law enforcement agencies in one country for data held in another country.
“Today, in addition to the inconsistent warrant requirement in ECPA, the law also is unclear on how to govern data requests that cross borders,” Espinel said during her testimony. “The lack of clear rules creates unhelpful confusion and has opened the door to US law enforcement demands that could undermine user trust around the world.”
BSA’s testimony in today’s hearing on “Reforming the Electronic Communications Act” focused on issues related to cross-border demands for data, their impact on user trust around the world, and the need for a framework to address such issues as are spelled out in the Hatch-Coons-Heller LEADS Act.
“BSA | The Software Alliance supports the ECPA Amendments Act because consumers, businesses and governments all will benefit from greater clarity in the law about the appropriate ways for law enforcement to access data,” said Espinel. “The Act makes critical updates that are needed to protect the privacy of Americans’ email content and subscriber records. We thank the Committee members for their attention to ECPA reform, and urge them to act quickly to update this decades-old law.”
Click here to download BSA’s testimony.
ABOUT BSA
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the global trade association of the enterprise software industry, representing companies that are leaders in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, and other cutting-edge technologies. We work in over 20 markets in the US, Europe, and Asia, advocating for policies that build trust in technology so that every industry sector and the public can benefit from innovation. BSA also supports its members and their customers by raising awareness of the risks of unlicensed software use and the benefits of software asset management, driving license compliance and software adoption around the world through sound IT procurement.