More
Published since 2012, our biannual report makes public the number of requests we receive and how we respond.
- Beyond The Numbers
Account did not exist: The identifiers provided in the request were not associated with valid Dropbox accounts.
All Writs Act Orders: All Writs Act Orders are issued by United States judges pursuant to the All Writs Act of 1789. The statute gives courts the power to “issue all writs necessary or appropriate in aid of their respective jurisdictions and agreeable to the usages and principles of law.”
Content: Content refers to the content of communications, which includes any information concerning the substance, purport or meaning of the communication. It includes the files stored in a person’s Dropbox account and the filenames associated with those files. A search warrant is required to compel the production of content. Often, search warrants will also seek basic subscriber information or other non-content records, in addition to the content of communications.
Emergency disclosure requests: Dropbox may voluntarily disclose information to law enforcement if we have a good faith belief that someone is at imminent risk of death or serious physical injury and we have information which may help prevent the threat. We require that law enforcement provides a written summary of the emergency and explanation of how the information requested will assist them in preventing the emergency.
No information provided: Common reasons that no information was provided in response to legal process include: (1) Dropbox objected to the request; (2) law enforcement withdrew the request; (3) the request failed to accurately identify an account; or (4) the request was a duplicate.
Non-content: Non-content records generally describes any available information other than the content of communications. It includes basic subscriber information, defined in Section 2703 of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and other information reflecting usage of an account. “Non-content” information does not include the files that people store in their Dropbox accounts.
Non-disclosure order: At their discretion, judges can issue court orders preventing or delaying Dropbox from notifying a user of a government request for their information. These orders often cite subsection 2705(b) of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and can extend for any length of time.
Non-US requests: Non-US requests include any formal legal process from a non-US governmental entity seeking user data. At this time, we accept US and Irish government requests. We may also respond to requests made pursuant to international agreements on legal cooperation in criminal matters, including Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties or letters rogatory.
Preservation: A preservation request is a government request to preserve user data pending the receipt of formal legal process. When we receive these requests, we will temporarily retain a snapshot of the relevant user data for 90 days, but we do not disclose user data in response to preservation requests. To obtain the preserved data, valid legal process is required and those subsequent requests are (and always have been) included in the report.
User Notice: Our policy is to notify users about requests for their account information prior to disclosure unless we are prohibited from doing so by law or where Dropbox, in its sole discretion, believes that there is an emergency or danger to any person. In some cases, Dropbox may provide delayed notice to the affected user(s) when any prohibition, emergency, or threat of danger has lifted.
Our tracking and reporting methods may evolve as we continually strive to improve the accuracy and clarity of our report.
Download our transparency report below.