WASHINGTON - A California judge ruled Friday in favor of Apple Computer in its bid to find the source of trade secrets posted online, saying the websites were not protected by constitutional guarantees of journalists.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge James Kleinberg ruled that Apple is entitled to find out the identities of sources of the leaked information about an upcoming product code-named "Asteroid."
The judge rejected a request for an order to protect the confidentiality of the sources.
The judge said that while he could not determine whether or not those who published the trade data were journalists, he said that even if they were, "This is not the equivalent of a free pass."
"The journalist`s privilege is not absolute," the judge wrote. "For example, journalists cannot refuse to disclose information when it relates to a crime."
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, representing the unnamed journalist, said it would appeal to the California Appellate Court.
"We`re disappointed that the trial court ignored the Supreme Court`s requirement that seeking a journalist`s confidential sources be a `last resort` in civil discovery," said EFF attorney Kurt Opsahl.
"This is a broad-brush ruling that threatens journalists of all stripes," added EFF legal director Cindy Cohn.
EFF contends that online reporters` confidential sources and unpublished materials are protected by the Constitution`s First Amendment.
Apple is suing several unnamed persons, called "Does," for releasing the information, and has subpoenaed an Internet service provider to obtain the identities of those operating the website responsible.
03/11/2005 22:18 GMT