Airbnb 2023 Law Enforcement Response Transparency Report
Overview
The principles of user data privacy and transparency are priorities for Airbnb. The 2023 Transparency Report is the 8th report Airbnb has published as a means of offering transparency and insight into the types and volume of requests we receive from law enforcement and governmental authorities and government authorities globally.
This report provides information regarding these requests and how they were handled during the period of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023.
Types of Requests We Receive
While criminal incidents related to the use of our platform remain rare, Airbnb actively works with law enforcement to support the safety, and enhance the trust of its Hosts, guests and our community at large, while balancing the need to respect their privacy rights. In 2023, Airbnb received the following types of requests from law enforcement and governmental agencies globally:
- General Inquiries: Questions related to the process of requesting user information.
- Legal Process Requests: Requests seeking information including personal information about users of the Airbnb platforms in the form of legal process, such as formal written requests, production orders, subpoenas, court orders, or search warrants, addressed to the relevant Airbnb entity.
- Emergency Disclosure Requests: Requests related to an imminent risk of death or serious physical injury to any person.
- Preservation Orders: In certain (and rare) scenarios, Airbnb may be requested to preserve a copy of user data for a specified period of time while a valid legal process for the data is obtained.
- MLATs: Airbnb receives a user data request from a foreign agency via the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) process. In these instances where the originating country is known to us, Airbnb reports the request under the originating country. Where the originating country is not known, Airbnb reports the request under its Irish entity, through which most MLAT requests are received.
How We Respond to Requests
Airbnb has a dedicated 24/7 global team that evaluates each request for legal validity in accordance with our Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, Law Enforcement Guidelines, and applicable laws and regulations. In most instances, Airbnb requires the submission of a valid legal process request in order to be in a position to consider disclosing user information.
Depending on the case in question, law enforcement agencies may request different types of user data. For example, requested data may include user account information, information pertaining to transactions conducted on our platform, and in some instances, subject to specific legal process in certain jurisdictions, contents of communications.
In certain emergency situations, Airbnb may disclose user information without legal process, when we have reason to believe, in good faith, that there is an imminent risk of death or serious physical injury to any person and disclosure without delay is required to avert the harm.
Airbnb’s Law Enforcement Guidelines describes our procedural requirements for law enforcement requests for user information, together with our process for receiving and evaluating such requests.
Notification to Users
When Airbnb receives a law enforcement request seeking user’s personal information, in accordance with Airbnb’s Privacy Policy, we may notify affected users, unless providing notice is prohibited by the legal process itself, by court order, or by applicable law.
Key Law Enforcement Response Statistics – Jan. 1, 2023 – Dec. 31, 2023
During the period covered by this report, Airbnb received legal process requests from 46 countries/regions. These requests come from various law enforcement authorities globally.
| Total number of law enforcement requests for user information | Total number of requests where some form of legal process was served | Total number of requests for which some user information was disclosed | Total number of user accounts effected* by information disclosure |
| 6,244 | 4,563 | 2,534 | 6,774 |
Percentage of Requests where some account information was disclosed 1
Regional Percentage where law enforcement submitted valid legal requests are:
| North America | 82.8% |
| Europe, Middle East and Africa | 44.42% |
| Asia Pacific | 46.24% |
| Latin America | 31.89% |
Circumstances impacting disclosure of data:
The majority of legal requests submitted by law enforcement resulted in user information being disclosed as they complied with Airbnb’s Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, Law Enforcement Guidelines and applicable laws.
However, 10.77% of the requests received during 2023 were either considered invalid, incomplete or did not comply with our policies, Law Enforcement Guidelines, or applicable laws and therefore we did not disclose user information. The reasons for such non disclosure include the following:
- Law enforcement did not follow up on our initial response notifying them of the deficiency in their request and/or non-disclosure order and requesting them to make the necessary amendments.
- Legal process was received, but upon review, was determined not to have a valid legal basis, or was considered overbroad with regard to the scope of data requested, or law enforcement was unable to demonstrate how the requested Airbnb data was reasonably related to the crime under investigation.
- An Airbnb account was not identified.
- Responsive data was not identified.
- Law Enforcement withdrew their request.
Legal Process Requests by Country/Region Jan. 1, 2023 – Dec. 31, 2023
| Country/Region | Number of Requests Received | Number of Requests for Which Some Account Information was Disclosed | Percentage of Requests for which some Account Information was Disclosed | Number of User Accounts Effected by Disclosure |
| Argentina | 9 | 2 | 22.22% | 7 |
| Australia | 253 | 111 | 43.87% | 190 |
| Austria | 28 | 12 | 42.86% | 16 |
| Belgium | 32 | 17 | 53.12% | 40 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 | 1 | 100% | 1 |
| Brazil | 213 | 66 | 30.99% | 321 |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| Cambodia | 1 | 1 | 100% | 1 |
| Canada | 100 | 64 | 64% | 123 |
| Colombia | 2 | 1 | 50% | 7 |
| Costa Rica | 6 | 4 | 66.67% | 4 |
| Czech Republic | 12 | 7 | 58.33% | 10 |
| Denmark | 5 | 1 | 20% | 1 |
| Estonia | 1 | 1 | 100% | 6 |
| Finland | 15 | 10 | 66.67% | 47 |
| France | 928 | 487 | 52.48% | 1,079 |
| Germany | 466 | 223 | 47.85% | 287 |
| Greece | 14 | 9 | 64.29% | 11 |
| Hungary | 5 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| Iceland | 1 | 1 | 100% | 3 |
| India | 6 | 1 | 16.67% | 2 |
| Ireland | 47 | 26 | 55.32% | 38 |
| Italy | 162 | 43 | 26.54% | 63 |
| Japan | 14 | 11 | 78.57% | 21 |
| Latvia | 3 | 1 | 33.33% | 2 |
| Lithuania | 2 | 1 | 50% | 1 |
| Luxembourg | 1 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| Mexico | 18 | 2 | 11.11% | 4 |
| Netherlands | 14 | 7 | 50% | 12 |
| New Zealand | 26 | 15 | 57.69% | 33 |
| Norway | 10 | 6 | 60% | 15 |
| Panama | 1 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| Peru | 2 | 1 | 50% | 1 |
| Poland | 14 | 7 | 50% | 8 |
| Portugal | 21 | 7 | 33.33% | 8 |
| Puerto Rico | 1 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| Romania | 14 | 6 | 42.86% | 7 |
| Singapore | 2 | 2 | 100% | 2 |
| South Africa | 3 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
| South Korea | 32 | 14 | 43.75% | 14 |
| Spain | 212 | 89 | 41.98% | 132 |
| Sweden | 39 | 19 | 48.72% | 29 |
| Switzerland | 25 | 14 | 56% | 78 |
| Taiwan | 1 | 1 | 100% | 1 |
| United Kingdom | 542 | 168 | 31% | 441 |
| United States | 1,258 | 1,075 | 85.45% | 3,708 |
| Total | 4,563 | 2,534 | 55.53% | 6,774 |
Emergency Disclosure Requests by Country/Region Jan. 1, 2023 – Dec. 31, 2023
| Country/Region | Number of Requests for Which Some Account Information was Disclosed | Number of User Accounts Effected by Disclosure |
| Australia | 18 | 24 |
| Brazil | 2 | 2 |
| Canada | 35 | 62 |
| Denmark | 2 | 6 |
| France | 12 | 22 |
| Germany | 1 | 1 |
| Ireland | 1 | 1 |
| Mexico | 1 | 4 |
| Netherlands | 1 | 1 |
| New Zealand | 4 | 31 |
| Norway | 2 | 6 |
| South Korea | 1 | 1 |
| Sweden | 4 | 17 |
| Switzerland | 1 | 2 |
| Thailand | 1 | 1 |
| United Kingdom | 31 | 46 |
| United States | 72 | 136 |
| Total | 189 | 363 |