Appeals Court Agrees with EFF that Building a Web Browser Doesn’t Violate the CFAA
The Ninth Circuit ruled that building a web browser with an optional AI assistant does not violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, agreeing with the EFF that users—not the browser company—access websites like Amazon. Amazon had sued Perplexity AI over its Comet browser, but the court held that the tool itself does not access servers without authorization.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that building a web browser does not violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), siding with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Amazon sued Perplexity AI over its Comet browser’s optional AI assistant, alleging unauthorized access to user accounts. The court held Perplexity unlikely liable because users—not the company—operate the tool. CFAA requires unauthorized “access” by the defendant, and Perplexity does not access Amazon’s servers. While agentic AI may raise novel issues, the assistant is a tool operated by users, not Perplexity. Amazon may pursue other claims, but the CFAA theory was baseless and could criminalize users.