A major concern is indemnification and immunity for the ISP. When someone is prosecuted they usually face major legal expenses, and often are incapable of paying them. The prospect of a lengthy prison sentence and/or criminal record does not portend well either. Defense lawyers know this all too well and will go after various deep pockets to help fund their client's defense, such as an ISP who they will argue revealed information inappropriately, violated a position of trust, etc. etc. etc. A proper subpoena issued by a court of competent jurisdiction and reasonably fulfilled tends to be slam-dunk defense against such lawsuits. Likely a judge would just toss any attempt at a lawsuit at initial hearing if it's obvious you were legally compelled to provide the information in question. To me this is at least as big a concern as any vague sense of fair play. Add in gag orders and the like, an atmosphere of silence and denial by LEOs this creates, and one gets the sinking feeling one can find themselves, as the expression goes, way up the creek without a paddle. I've certainly had exactly this conversation with LEOs who sent requests for customer information, even an Ivy League university's senior legal counsel once when their "police dept" was demanding info and for some bizarre reason refused to get a subpoena even over a period of months of ever more heated requests and never had the slightest doubt expressed that I was exactly correct in my concerns. -- -Barry Shein Software Tool & Die | bzs@TheWorld.com | http://www.TheWorld.com Purveyors to the Trade | Voice: 617-739-0202 | Login: 617-739-WRLD The World | Public Access Internet | Since 1989 *oo*