Lavabit case documents unsealed, show government demanded encryption keys
Lavabit, the encrypted email provider of choice used by Edward Snowden, spontaneously closed its doors this past summer, doing so for vague reasons related to the government, though the service’s owner was (and is) under gag order, keeping things quiet. Last month, a request to have some of the documents unsealed was submitted, which would allow amicus briefs to be filed. Such a request has been honored, revealing some information about what went down behind closed doors.
The government originally fought against the request, filing against the motion. That filing was ultimately denied, it would seem, with some case documents being unsealed today. In them, it is revealed the government sent Lavabit’s owner, Levison, an order to provide metadata on a specific unnamed user who is widely believed to be Edward Snowden.
