Jonathan Thorne

In the spirit of Constitution Day, tech leaders and protectors of Internet privacy released an advertisement urging reform of the outdated Electronic Communication Privacy Act (ECPA). The bipartisan Leahy-Lee (S. 607) and Yoder-Polis (H.R. 1852) bills seek to update ECPA by making it clear that the warrant standard of the U.S. Constitution applies to private digital information just as it applies to physical property. These bills have support on both sides of the aisle, as well as from consumers and businesses large and small. Although civil regulatory agencies resist reform, revising ECPA would encourage continued innovation while preserving security, privacy, and the enforcement of justice on the Internet. With approval by the Senate Judiciary Committee and over 260 House co-sponsors, ECPA reform is a straightforward issue that concerns Americans who value their digital privacy.