--- description: The blogger was communicating with a former employee accused of leaking company secrets title: Microsoft Admits it Searched Blogger's Hotmail Account image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Companies](/tag/companies/) ## Companies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Microsoft Admits to Searching Blogger's Emails by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 21, 2014 11:46 AM CUT by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 21, 2014 11:46 AM CUT Microsoft [admitted](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/microsoft-says-it-snooped-hotmail-track-leak "undefined") Thursday that it searched a blogger’s emails during an internal investigation into who leaked company secrets. John Frank, the company’s deputy general counsel said in a statement that Microsoft “took extraordinary actions in this case,” the Associated Press reports. In September 2012, Microsoft searched the Hotmail account and instant messages of a blogger who was communicating with a former software architect for the company, Alex Kibkalo. Kibkalo was named in an FBI complaint filed on Monday, but the blogger was not identified, the AP reports. Kibkalo allegedly shared tweaks to the Windows 8 RT operating system and software tools that could have aided hackers in navigating and activating Microsoft programs. Kibkalo’s cloud account, which he allegedly used to share files with the blogger, was also searched. Kibkalo has since located to Russia, according to authorities. Microsoft said its legal office approved the search but that in the future it would consult an outside attorney before resorting to such measures. But Frank said a court order wasn’t needed in this case. “Courts do not issue orders authorizing someone to search themselves,” he said. “Even when we have probable cause, it’s not feasible to ask a court to order us to search ourselves.” \[[_AP_](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/microsoft-says-it-snooped-hotmail-track-leak "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/33185/microsoft-admits-to-searching-bloggers-emails/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/33185/microsoft-admits-to-searching-bloggers-emails/"},"headline":"Microsoft Admits to Searching Blogger's Emails","datePublished":"2014-03-21T11:46:03.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:01:47.825Z","description":"The tech giant admits it searched a blogger's emails during an internal investigation into a former employee who was accused of leaking company secrets, saying in this case it “took extraordinary actions\"","url":"https://time.com/33185/microsoft-admits-to-searching-bloggers-emails/","keywords":["Companies","Tech","Microsoft"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/companies/","name":"Companies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/33185/microsoft-admits-to-searching-bloggers-emails/","name":"Microsoft Admits to Searching Blogger's Emails"}}]}] ```