FBI Withdraws Unconstitutional National Security Letter After ACLU and EFF Challenge

Gag Order Lifted on Internet Archive, Allowing Founder to Speak Out for First Time

San Francisco – The FBI has withdrawn an unconstitutional national security letter (NSL) issued to the Internet Archive after a legal challenge from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). As the result of a settlement agreement, the FBI withdrew the NSL and agreed to the unsealing of the case, finally allowing the Archive’s founder to speak out for the first time about his battle against the record demand.

“The free flow of information is at the heart of every library’s work. That’s why Congress passed a law limiting the FBI’s power to issue NSLs to America’s libraries,” said Brewster Kahle, founder and Digital Librarian of the Internet Archive. “While it’s never easy standing up to the government — particularly when I was barred from discussing it with anyone — I knew I had to challenge something that was clearly wrong. I’m grateful that I am able now to talk about what happened to me, so that other libraries can learn how they can fight back from these overreaching demands.”

• EFF’s overview of the Internet Archive, et al v Mukasey et al case, with links to partially-redacted NSL and other court documents
• ACLU’s overview of Internet Archive, et al v Mukasey et al and background on National Security Letters
• Full EFF/ACLU Press Release