Law & jurisdiction

What happens if you receive a subpoena or court order?

Short answer

We assess whether it is valid legal process from a court with jurisdiction over OnionVPS. If it is, we comply with exactly what is ordered and nothing beyond it. In practice that is very little: an email address and a payment reference. If it is not valid, we reject it. Either way, the warrant canary reflects reality.

Because we never collect identity documents, billing addresses, phone numbers or card details, and do not generate connection logs, there is very little that any order can produce. This is the central design decision of the service: minimise what exists rather than promise to guard it.

Where the law permits, we notify the affected customer before responding, so that they have the opportunity to challenge the order themselves. Where a gag order forbids notification, we cannot notify — and the warrant canary is what carries that information instead.

See also: Warrant canary