Web Giants Disclose Some Spy Order Compliance Records

Remember how Google sued to reveal its role in the US spy program called PRISM brought to light through Edward Snowden’s disclosures. That was in June 2013.

With that pressure from Google and other web giants like Yahoo, Facebook, and Microsoft, the US relaxed rules about their disclosures, permitting reports at least six months past in increments of 1000 or more.

Today those web giants reported somewhat concrete data. It shows less support by the big web companies than many suspected. Here’s a summary of their reports in reply to orders from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court for content of customers.

Facebook 5000 to 5999 content orders answered

Google 9000 to 9999 content orders answered

Microsoft 15000 to 15999 content orders answered

Yahoo 30000 to 30999 content orders answered

Despite the financial capacity to litigate head to head with the US government, the web giants bent to the will of the US to answer thousands of requests. The number of requests implies how active the FISA court must be, although no reports clarify how many other records US agencies such as the NSA simply stole through wire taps, satellite signal capture, and microwave decryption.

Is this enough disclosure? No, not nearly enough, according to Senator Patrick Leahy, chair of the US Senate Judiciary Committee, a Democrat from the State of Vermont. Six members of Congress have demanded more disclosure by filing a brief with the US Supreme Court last July 2013.

Some patriotic souls undoubtedly support any action by the US government that might have even a remote chance of improving national security. Other equally patriotic souls grow increasingly concerned with erosion of US citizen privacy over the past ten years. It is time for a national conversation about how far our government should be permitted to go to erode our historic freedoms in order to build walls of security around us. More specifically, HamiltonFinanceServices.com (HFS) calls for much more action by the US congress, the web giants, and citizens of the US alarmed by government spying in the name of national security. HFS analysts believe the majority should speak out on this issue. Do you agree?