US authorities can spy on the iCloud without a warrant Introduced towards the end of President George W Bush's administration in 2008, it was renewed in December. But only now are privacy campaigners and legal experts waking up to the extent of the intrusion, according to The Independent. Caspar Bowden, who served as Microsoft Europe's chief privacy adviser for nine years until 2011, told the newspaper: "What this legislation means is that the US has been able to mine any foreign data in US Clouds since 2008, and nobody noticed." Bodies such as the National Security Agency, the FBI and the CIA can gain access to any information that potentially concerns US foreign policy for purely political reasons - with no need for any suspicion that national security is at stake - meaning that religious groups, campaigning organisations and journalists could be targeted. The information can be intercepted and stored in bulk as it enters the US via cables crossing the Atlantic Ocean. A Google spokesperson said: "It is possible for the US government (and European governments) to access certain types of data via their law enforcement agencies. We think this kind of access to data merits serious discussion and more transparency.