US demands details of 1.3m visitors to anti-Trump website
Search warrant served on web-hosting company in 'alarming' crackdown on US President's opponents

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
The US government has ordered the US-based web hosting service DreamHost to disclose the details of more than 1.3 million visitors to an anti-Trump website.
The website, disruptj20.org, was used by millions to organise protests, marches and civil disobedience during President Donald Trump's inauguration on 20 January this year.
The US Department of Justice served DreamHost with a search warrant for every item of information it possessed in mid-July, DreamHost said on Tuesday, triggering concerns about individual privacy online.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
DreamHost said in a statement that the request for information included "1.3 million visitor IP addresses – in addition to contact information, email content, and photos of thousands of people – in an effort to determine who simply visited the website".
"That information could be used to identify any individuals who used this site to exercise and express political speech," it added, and said that such a request "should be enough to set alarm bells off in anyone's mind".
The Guardian describes the Department of Justice's request as "an escalation of the [its] campaign against anti-Trump activities, including the harsh prosecution of inauguration day protesters".
At least 217 people were arrested during a protest against Trump's inauguration, the Daily Telegraph reports.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Can HS2 get back on track?
Today's Big Question West Midlands mayor offers business solution to keep northern leg but final decision may rest with Labour
By The Week Staff Published
-
'A purported ban on phones in schools is a lazy sleight of hand'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week Staff Published
-
The daily business briefing: October 3, 2023
Business Briefing Tesla sales slip despite price cuts, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella testifies in Google antitrust trial, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
What is Rep. Matt Gaetz's endgame?
Today's Big Question The MAGA congressman loves to sow chaos, but there might be more to his latest moves than just disruption.
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
'Accepting defeat is Rishi Sunak's only hope of victory'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week Staff Published
-
'A teetering democracy of gerontocrats?'
Instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass Published
-
'Labour risks making private schools a conclave for the super-rich'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week Staff Published
-
'Companies can't make a profit and can't keep employees safe'
Instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass Published
-
'America's conservative party has collapsed'
Instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass Published
-
'Biden must be embarrassed he didn't think of this first'
Instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass Published
-
Why is the UK pushing Germany on fighter jets for Saudi Arabia?
Today's big question Berlin has opposed the sale of weapons to Riyadh on humanitarian grounds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published