Big Brother is watching, just ask Google.
Google’s latest Transparency Report has revealed government
surveillance is on the rise around the world — and the U.S. government
is the worst offender.
In the January-June 2012 time period, the U.S. government made 7,969 user data requests
— more than three times as many as India, which was No. 2 on the list
of user data requests at 2,319. Canada, the U.S.’s closest neighbor and
ally, made only 50 requests by comparison.
Google’s Transparency Report, which it began releasing bi-annually in
2010, is a bid to shine a light on “how governments sometimes hamper
the free flow of information on the Web,” says Dorothy Chou, senior
policy analyst, in a blog post.
“This is the sixth time we’ve released this data, and one trend has
become clear: Government surveillance is on the rise,” Chou writes.
“Government demands for user data have increased steadily since we first
launched the Transparency Report. In the first half of 2012, there were
20,938 inquiries from government entities around the world. Those
requests were for information about 34,614 accounts.”
The number of government requests to remove content from Google’s services was largely unchanged from 2009 to 2011.
During the current reporting period, however, it has skyrocketed with
1,791 requests from government officials around the world to remove
17,746 pieces of content — a rise of 46 percent compared to the previous
reporting period, Google says.
In the U.S., Google received a total of 209 court orders demanding
the removal of 3,613 pieces of content between January and June of this
year. It complied with 46 percent of requests.
Google also received 64 requests for the removal of 554 pieces of
content from law enforcement or executives. It complied with 44 percent
of the requests.
The search engine received five requests and one court order to
remove seven YouTube videos that criticized local and state government
agencies, law enforcement or public officials. Google did not comply
with any of the requests.
The search engine also received three court orders to remove 641
search results for linking to websites that allegedly defame
organizations and individuals. Google removed 233 of the search results.
Since Google began tracking the stats in 2010, defamation and privacy
and security have been the chief reasons for removal requests.
“The information we disclose is only an isolated sliver showing how
governments interact with the Internet, since for the most part we don’t
know what requests are made of other technology or telecommunications
companies,” Chou says.
“But we’re heartened that in the past year, more companies like Dropbox, LinkedIn, Sonic.net and Twitter
have begun to share their statistics too. Our hope is that over time,
more data will bolster public debate about how we can best keep the
Internet free and open.”
Google’s transparency report can be read here in its entirety.
Post from: SiteProNews
