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Dutch Police Seize Activist Group's Server at US Request and Hand Its Data to the US
Amsterdam police seized a server of the Italian activist email and web host Autistici/Inventati at US request, Decrypt reports, and Dutch authorities are handing its data to the US. A lawyer questions whether the Netherlands considered its right to refuse. A privacy advocate calls it a "terrifying precedent."
About 5 min read
What happened
Decrypt reports that Amsterdam police seized a server belonging to the anti-fascist group Autistici/Inventati (A/I) after a request from US authorities. Decrypt says the incident took place "last week" and that NL Times reported it on Saturday.
Decrypt describes A/I as an Italian internet service provider and an anti-capitalist, anti-fascist group that offered free email and website hosting to organizations and activists. Decrypt adds that police seized the server from a data center in eastern Amsterdam, and that Dutch authorities are now handing its data to the US.
The US designation and its effects
Decrypt reports that in August the US designated A/I a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist." The US alleged that A/I operates digital infrastructure for "violent Antifa cells and other far-left militants."
Decrypt says the designation bars people and organizations in the US from doing business with A/I. Because its users and donors faced potential repercussions, A/I has disbanded.
Legal and policy views from those interviewed
The following are personal views that Yuriy Brisov, a lawyer and partner at Digital & Analogue Partners, and Harry Halpin, a privacy advocate and CEO of the privacy infrastructure firm Nym, gave to Decrypt. A mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT) is an agreement under which countries ask each other for help with investigations. Through such an agreement, one country can ask another to carry out a search or seizure under its own laws.
| Issue | Interviewee's view (per Decrypt) |
|---|---|
| Effect of the designation | Brisov said the US designation has no standing in the Netherlands and that a different legal power was used here. He added that making the designation requires no conviction or court hearing, and that neither the Dutch government nor the EU has followed it. |
| Rules for requests | Brisov said the rules for requesting assistance between the US and EU countries are in the MLAT signed in The Hague in 1981. |
| How it is carried out | Brisov said everything is done under Dutch law, by Dutch officers, with Dutch powers, but entirely at the request of the US. |
| Whether it can be refused | Brisov said the Netherlands can refuse if a request harms its essential interests, concerns a political offense, or amounts to double jeopardy (prosecuting the same act twice). He added that seizure is allowed only for conduct that is a crime in both countries carrying more than a year in prison. |
| Halpin's view | Halpin said politically motivated server seizures set a "terrifying precedent" and that the request should have been scrutinized because of its political nature. |
Questions still in dispute
Brisov told Decrypt that prosecutors operate on a "trust principle," meaning they trust the requesting country. As a result, prosecutors do not assess whether the seizure is proportionate, nor whether the US investigation actually needs the material. He questioned whether anyone in The Hague asked the political-offense question. He also said Dutch law reserves that question for Justice and Security Minister David van Weel personally.
Brisov also noted that internet hosts are not normally liable for what their users do. That rule is written into US law and, through the EU's Digital Services Act, into EU law. Halpin told Decrypt that any country that believes in sovereignty should push back against politically motivated server seizures. He argued that a truly decentralized setup spanning multiple jurisdictions is the only way to resist nation-state-level attacks on digital infrastructure.
Frequently asked questions
Where does the news of this seizure come from?
This article is based on Decrypt's reporting. Decrypt says NL Times reported the incident on Saturday. Decrypt also quotes lawyer Yuriy Brisov and privacy advocate Harry Halpin.
What is A/I?
Decrypt describes A/I as an Italian internet service provider and an anti-capitalist, anti-fascist group that offered free email and website hosting to organizations and activists. Decrypt says it disbanded after the US designated it a terrorist organization.
Is the US terrorist designation valid in the Netherlands?
Brisov told Decrypt that the designation has no standing in the Netherlands and that a different legal power was used here. He also said neither the Dutch government nor the EU has followed the US designation.
How does the 1981 mutual legal assistance treaty relate to this?
Brisov told Decrypt that the rules for requesting assistance between the US and EU countries are in the MLAT signed in The Hague in 1981. Under it, the seizure is carried out by Dutch officers under Dutch law, but at the request of the US.
Can the Netherlands refuse a US request?
Brisov said the Netherlands can refuse if a request harms its essential interests, concerns a political offense, or amounts to double jeopardy (prosecuting the same act twice). He also noted that seizure is allowed only if the alleged conduct is a crime in both countries carrying more than a year in prison.
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