Skip to main content

Google, Microsoft And Other Tech Giants Writes Open Letter To Obama

Surveillance is a big issue that has been making headlines in recent times. There had been reports that the US government, specifically the NSA constantly gaining access or forcing its way into servers to gain access to people's data stored on Tech giant servers.


In other to address this issue of surveillance, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook along with seven other tech companies  wrote a open letter to the US president Barrack Obama and members of Congress urging them to look into reforming the government surveillance tactics being used according to the Wall Street Journal.

The letter, which was endorsed by the tech companies can be found in this website. It is expected to appear today in full-page on different  publications such as the New York Times and Washington Post. However, an excerpt of the letter is shown below.

"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 user’s 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 www.ReformGovernmentSurveillance.com

Sincerely,

AOL, Apple, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter, Yahoo"

The tech companies didn't stop there, they also listed some sort of procedures that they think the government should follow certain procedures in other to obtain users' information from any company.


Furthermore, it was stressed that the limitation of government authority to collect users' information, oversight and accountability, transparency about demands, respect for the free flow of information, and the avoidance of conflicts among governments should be considered.

In recent times, Apple have been accused of aiding the government to get users' information in which the fruit company was apt to deny.

However, in this new stand taken by Apple alongside other tech giants, it would mean that everyone is not in support of the surveillance activities and users data mining by the US government.

Like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter for more smartphone news.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Tecno M3 Specifications and Features

Tecno is making the news again after a slight break. This time around Tecno have released a low-end smartphone called Tecno M3 for those that are on a tight budget.  This phone comes with 8GB internal memory card, USB adapter & charger, earphone and a plastic case. Although Tecno L3 and D3 are almost the same with M3, M3 has a better camera (5mp) with more swift feel especially when browsing. L3 on the other hand has a better battery performance but much slower internet speed. As we said in one of our posts, the 3 is a designation for low-end devices and the newly released L3 and M3 is proof of that. For a device of the price, feel and usage is smooth enough. Make sure you check the speaker of your M3 since some have reported that its not too clear. Below is the specifications of the M3 low-end smartphone. Network : the new M3 supports both 2G and 3G networks Connectivity : Bluetooth 3.0 with Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP). It also has

List of Phones That Support BBM For Android and iPhone

BlackBerry's BBM for Android devices and iPhone is expected to be available for download on 21st and 22nd of September from the App Store of the two supported platforms respectively. One question that have constantly being asked is that "What phones will this BBM support on Android and iPhone?" For this reason, this post was made to clarify any doubts. To answer the question, consider the following points. BBM will support Android Ice Cream Sandwich and above. That is Androi 4.0 and above BBM will support iOS 6.0 and above BBM will work on All Samsung devices be it note, smartphone or tablet if they are running Android 4.0 and above BBM will work on Tecno and Infinix products if they are running Android 4.0 and above. This means that Tecno N7, Tecno M3, L3, D5,  Phantom A, Phantom A+, Phantom N9, Infinix X570, X530 etc BBM will support iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S. BBM may not be available for iPads for now. BBM

Infinix Alpha Marvel (X502) Detailed Hands - On Review

We have spoken about the Infinix Alpha Marvel smartphone recently and now its officially available for purchase. its expected features were talked about which were not far at all from the real thing.  Today, we had an opportunity to lay our hands on the Infinix Alpha Marvel (X502) smartphone and it was splendid using the device.    The X502 didn't go too stray from the leaked specifications and we are giving you a hands - on review just after the break. The Infinix Alpha Marvel which we shall refer to as X502 from now on is a 5 inch touchscreen device with gorgeous screen display and comfortable feel to the hand. Even though it has an all metallic finish to it, its quite light in terms of weight compared to the Infinix X570 that was released about 2 months ago. On purchase, it comes bundled with a flip case along with the phone and its accessories. Dimension, weight and casing The X502 has a dimension of 147 x 72.1 x6.98 mm and a weight of 0.56w/Kg. Con