Facebook, Google and Amazon are asking to change the Law allowing intelligence to collect information about users of the network

Facebook, Google and Amazon are asking to change the Law allowing intelligence to collect information about users of the network

Facebook, Google, Amazon and more than two dozen other companies operating in the technology sector in the United States on Friday signed a letter regarding the amendments to the law on the supervision of online safety, saying that changes needed to better protect privacy and enhance transparency of government operations.

This is the first significant effort of the representatives of Silicon valley in the matter of changes caused a storm of public indignation legislation, namely the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Law on the supervision of foreign intelligence), the validity of the individual items of which expires on December 31, if Congress does not approve them again.

Of particular concern to representatives of the industry and defenders of the inviolability of private life is section 702, which allows the intelligence services of the USA to read a huge number of messages from foreigners, and also, to access some of the data owned by the Americans, without a warrant.

«We write to Express their support for the reform Section 702 is subject to the adoption of the amendments will retain its utility for the U.S. intelligence community, while improving protection and transparency of information within the program,» the company wrote in a letter addressed to the representative of the Republicans in the house of representatives, Bob Goodlatte.

Under the proposals, oversight of government requests regarding the collection of information by intelligence services should be restored and strengthened. The representatives of the technology are asked to make more transparent the activities of exploration, for example, in relation to the content of the data collected. Moreover, companies are asked to narrow the scope of information subject to study, excluding data relating to foreign nationals not suspects in crimes. Also asked to expand their freedom in relation to the declassification of data on the numbers of requests for information from government and intelligence services, as well as court decisions regarding the collection of such information.

The proposal put forward by the companies, does not yet have the form of the bill, but the work on it is already underway.

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