Minnesota Internet Service Provider Privacy Law
MN ISP Privacy
Communications · Data security
Enacted in 2002, this law bars Internet service providers from knowingly disclosing a subscriber's personally identifiable information, including the sites the subscriber visits and the contents of the subscriber's storage devices, except where disclosure is required by legal process or permitted for ordinary business, abuse reporting, or with the subscriber's authorization. The sections expire if federal law preempts state regulation of ISP disclosure of such information.
- Where
- Minnesota
- Citation
- Minn. Stat. 325M.01 to 325M.09
- Status
- In force
- In force since
- 2003-03-01
- Enforced by
- Private civil action by consumers (325M.07)
- People can sue
- Yes
- Penalties
- A prevailing consumer recovers the greater of $500 or actual damages, and costs and reasonable attorney fees may be awarded; class actions are barred; reasonable practices and procedures to prevent violations are a defense (325M.07).
- Applies to
- Internet service providers providing Internet access to consumers in Minnesota who pay for personal, family, or household use (325M.01, 325M.09)
Practices it requires
- Do not knowingly disclose a consumer's personally identifiable information (addresses, phone numbers, services requested, sites visited, or storage-device contents) except as required or permitted by the statute.Minn. Stat. 325M.01, subd. 5; 325M.02
- Disclosure to others is permitted incident to ordinary business, to other ISPs to report acceptable-use violations, or with the consumer's authorization, which must describe recipients and uses and be obtained under a conspicuous contract term.Minn. Stat. 325M.04
Security duties
- Take reasonable steps to maintain the security and privacy of consumers' personally identifiable information.Minn. Stat. 325M.05
Other duties
- Information obtained in violation of the law is inadmissible in civil actions except to prove a violation.Minn. Stat. 325M.06
- Disclosure is required in response to grand jury and other subpoenas, warrants, court orders, law enforcement acting as authorized, certain collection suits, and a consumer's own request (at no more than actual retrieval cost).Minn. Stat. 325M.03
Sources
- Official text
- Minn. Stat. 325M.01 to 325M.09, 2025 Minnesota Statutes (Office of the Revisor of Statutes)
- Laws 2002, ch. 395, art. 1, s. 11 (effective March 1, 2003; expires on federal preemption)
Checked against these sources on 2026-09-25 by research agent (Claude), primary sources.
Research reference, not legal advice.