Tech Giants Let NSA Collect User Data

In a world where technology is king and data leak scandals are prevalent, we never truly know who could potentially collect our user data. We blindly put our trust into technology companies, whose privacy policies that we never actually read, without skipping a beat. 

That is why it should be no surprise that tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Apple and Yahoo knew of the existence of the Internet surveillance program PRISM.  According to the NSA's top lawyer, quoted in a recent Mashable article, these companies complied with the government order however they just didn't know it was called that. This revelation comes after months of repeated — and very similar —denials by the tech companies.

As it turned out, the NSA can't just press a button and read a target's emails. The NSA has to get a Section 702 order (which refers to the part of the law which serves as its legal basis) and then the companies comply with it, delivering the data in different ways.

To put this is a PR perspective, it’s a disturbing thought that something you post for a client on Facebook or something you search for on Google while at work could cause three SUVs to materialize in your front yard while six plainclothes police officers fan out to case the joint and ask you a few questions. Sensitive client information should only be used while in private web browsing mode. 

What is your opinion on this recent government scandal? We want to know!

PRISM and Social Media Security

As the internet and social media have evolved, so has the etiquette that we should follow when using them. We have been taught not to post or send anything that we would not want to get out, for the sake of being professional online. However, we were not told to be careful of what we share in the event that the government would see it. 

Over the weekend, news broke that the National Security Agency and the FBI have been accessing information from the servers of nine top U.S. internet companies through a program code-named PRISM. The purpose of this program is to track foreign targets. So far information has been gathered from Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, PalTalk, AOL, Skype, YouTube, and Apple; basically, every website that is used by millions of people on a daily basis. It has been reported that the NSA and FBI can request email, chat (both voice and video), video, photos, file transfers, and more. 

The most interesting thing about this revelation is that it is completely legal thanks to two pieces of legislation passed during the Bush Administration. The first, The Protect America Act of 2007 which allowed suspects to be monitored online without a warrant if they are “reasonably believed” to be foreign. The second, the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 which grants immunity to the internet companies that provide the information. Because of this, most, if not all, government statements thus far have been unapologetic and in support of continuing this program to ensure the safety of this country. 

Just yesterday, the PRISM whistleblower, Edward Snowden, decided to come forward. Why? He explains that when going up against such powerful agencies, you go in knowing that, “If they want you, they will get you in due time.” Snowden says that trying to keep your identity a secret does not prolong any consequences. He chose to blow the whistle on this project because he simply does not “want to live in a society that does these sort of things.”

This has sparked a huge debate among American citizens. Is PRISM an intrusion on our Constitutional rights or is it simply a new measure that our government has to take to keep our nation safe in this internet age?

Which side of the debate do you fall on? We want to know!

For more information on PRISM and the whistleblower, read these articles.