Google, Apple, Microsoft and Twitter issue open letter to President Obama to curtail an NSA run amok
NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland
An open letter to Washington
Dear Mr. President and Members of Congress,
We understand that governments have a duty to protect their citizens. But this summer’s revelations highlighted the urgent need to reform government surveillance practices worldwide. The balance in many countries has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual — rights that are enshrined in our Constitution. This undermines the freedoms we all cherish. It’s time for a change.
For our part, we are focused on keeping users’ data secure — deploying the latest encryption technology to prevent unauthorized surveillance on our networks and by pushing back on government requests to ensure that they are legal and reasonable in scope.
We urge the US to take the lead and make reforms that ensure that government surveillance efforts are clearly restricted by law, proportionate to the risks, transparent and subject to independent oversight. To see the full set of principles we support, visit ReformGovernmentSurveillance.com
Sincerely,
AOL, Apple, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter, Yahoo
Dear Mr. President and Members of Congress,
We understand that governments have a duty to protect their citizens. But this summer’s revelations highlighted the urgent need to reform government surveillance practices worldwide. The balance in many countries has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual — rights that are enshrined in our Constitution. This undermines the freedoms we all cherish. It’s time for a change.
For our part, we are focused on keeping users’ data secure — deploying the latest encryption technology to prevent unauthorized surveillance on our networks and by pushing back on government requests to ensure that they are legal and reasonable in scope.
We urge the US to take the lead and make reforms that ensure that government surveillance efforts are clearly restricted by law, proportionate to the risks, transparent and subject to independent oversight. To see the full set of principles we support, visit ReformGovernmentSurveillance.com
Sincerely,
AOL, Apple, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter, Yahoo
We guess the news that NSA under General Keith Alexander went as far as tapping the underseas cables that transport the internet traffic to companies like Google and Microsoft was the last drop. General Alexander was announced to be resigning from his duties as NSA chief, but the systems he built are likely still operational, and Microsoft already took measures to encrypt the traffic to and from its servers against NSA surveillance.
Now with the open letter of Apple, Microsoft, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, AOL and Yahoo, the tech giants, which represent quite a large chunk of US GDP, are urging for more transparency. Who can blame them - under the gag orders from the secretive FISA court, they can't mention how many requests for disclosing information they are getting by the NSA, let alone the snooping specifics, which might result in exodus of users looking for spy-free alternatives.
source: ReformGovernmentSurveillance
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