On LJ migrating to Russian servers
I work for a tech company that deals with data residency issues all the time, so I'm sharing what I know about the legalities of LiveJournal moving its physical servers to Russia. (I don't know for certain that they have moved, but 
siderea has posted some evidence.)
What I know:
When a company offers a service to the public, the laws governing that service are determined by where the physical servers reside. For most of its life, LiveJournal servers lived in California, so LJ had to abide by California laws. Among other things, it meant that:
With the servers in Russia, none of that applies anymore. They can basically remove any posts that they don't like (political or otherwise) without giving you a reason. They can delete your entire journal without explanation or recourse. They can also translate your fiction and sell it as their own. And, since they have your credit card info, they can share that with their Russian mafia buddies and use it to steal your identity, hack your bank accounts, etc.
Granted, LiveJournal has been owned by a Russian company for several years, so they might have been doing some of this stuff already. But last week, you could have sued them in a California court for doing it. From now on, you have no legal recourse.
This entry was originally posted at http://lynnenne.dreamwidth.org/305395.html. Comments welcome at either site.
siderea has posted some evidence.)
What I know:
When a company offers a service to the public, the laws governing that service are determined by where the physical servers reside. For most of its life, LiveJournal servers lived in California, so LJ had to abide by California laws. Among other things, it meant that:
- LJ couldn't share your personal data with advertisers, researchers, or other third parties without your permission
- You maintained the copyright to any stories or essays you wrote
- Whatever speech you published was protected by the first amendment, so they needed a valid reason to take it down (e.g. It violated LJ's terms and conditions, it constituted criminal activity, etc)
- LJ could not turn over your personal data to law enforcement without a warrant
With the servers in Russia, none of that applies anymore. They can basically remove any posts that they don't like (political or otherwise) without giving you a reason. They can delete your entire journal without explanation or recourse. They can also translate your fiction and sell it as their own. And, since they have your credit card info, they can share that with their Russian mafia buddies and use it to steal your identity, hack your bank accounts, etc.
Granted, LiveJournal has been owned by a Russian company for several years, so they might have been doing some of this stuff already. But last week, you could have sued them in a California court for doing it. From now on, you have no legal recourse.
This entry was originally posted at http://lynnenne.dreamwidth.org/305395.html. Comments welcome at either site.