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HR 4956 108th Congress House

E-mail Privacy Act of 2004

Official title: To amend title 18, United States Code, to provide penalties for accessing certain electronic communications in a manner that violates consumer privacy, and for other purposes.

Introduced: September 8, 2004 See on congress.gov
Crime and Law Enforcement Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesElectronic mail systemsElectronic surveillanceInternet
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
Right of privacyScience, Technology, CommunicationsWiretapping
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This bill died when the 108th Congress ended
It never became law before the 108th Congress (2003–2004) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Aug 4, 2004
Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Jul 22, 2004
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Jul 22, 2004
Introduced in House
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 Latest action August 4, 2004

Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

E-mail Privacy Act of 2004 - Amends Federal criminal code provisions concerning interception of electronic communications to modify the definition of "intercept" to include the acquisition of the contents of the communication through the use of any electronic, mechanical, or other device, at any point between the point of origin and the point when it is made available to the recipient.

Limits the service provider exception to the prohibition on unlawful access to stored communications to access to the extent necessary incident to the rendition of the service, the protection of the rights or property of the service provider, or compliance with provisions regarding disclosure of customer communications or records.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
 Cosponsors 4
All 4 Democratic 1 Independent 1
HOEFFEL, JOSEPH
· Sep 24, 2004
CHRISTENSEN, DONNA
· Sep 17, 2004
 D
Case, Ed
Hawaii · Sep 8, 2004
 I
Sanders, Bernard
Vermont · Sep 8, 2004
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 4956: E-mail Privacy Act of 2004. 108th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-4956/
MLA
"H.R. 4956: E-mail Privacy Act of 2004." 108th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-4956/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 4956, 108th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-4956/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 4956: E-mail Privacy Act of 2004](https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-4956/)
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