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Tag: Surfshark

  • US Agencies Request the Most User Data From Big Tech, Apple Complies the Most

    US Agencies Request the Most User Data From Big Tech, Apple Complies the Most

    Americans concerned about their user data falling into the hands of foreign governments may want to look closer to home.

    According to new research by VPN provider SurfShark, the US government makes the most requests for user data from Big Tech companies than any other jurisdiction in the world. The company analyzed data requests to Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft by “government agencies of 177 countries between 2013 and 2021.”

    The US came in first with 2,451,077 account requests, more than four times the number of Germany, the number two country on the list. In fact, the US made more requests than all of Europe, including the UK, which collectively came in under 2 million.

    While the US and EU were responsible for a combined total of 60% of all data requests, the US “made 8 times more requests than the global average (87.9/100k).”

    The number of accounts being accessed is also growing, with a five-times increase in requests from 2013 to 2021. The US alone saw a 348% increase during the time frame, and the scope and purpose of the requests are expanding.

    “Besides requesting data from technology companies, authorities are now exploring more ways to monitor and tackle crime through online services. For instance, the EU is considering a regulation that would require internet service providers to detect, report, and remove abuse-related content,” says Gabriele Kaveckyte, Privacy Counsel at Surfshark. “On one hand, introducing such new measures could help solve serious criminal cases, but civil society organizations expressed their concerns of encouraging surveillance techniques which may later be used, for example, to track down political rivals.”

    The report also sheds light on which companies comply the most versus which ones push back against requests. For all of its privacy-oriented marketing — “what happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone” — Apple complies with data requests more than any other company, handing it over 82% of the time.

    In contrast, Meta complies 72% of the time, and Google does 71% of the time. Microsoft, on the other hand, pushes back the most among Big Tech companies, only handing data over 68% of the time.

    The findings may also put a dent in US efforts to ban TikTok and other foreign apps under the guise of protecting user privacy and data.

  • VPN Providers Abandon India Amid Privacy Crackdown

    VPN Providers Abandon India Amid Privacy Crackdown

    As expected, India’s new privacy regulations are leading to a mass exodus of VPN providers.

    India introduced legislation to force VPN providers to capture and collect customer data, defeating the very purpose of why many use VPN services. Many companies threatened to leave the country if the legislation passed, and they are now following through, according to Wired.

    “As digital privacy and security advocates, we are concerned about the possible effect this regulation may have on not only our users but people’s data in general,” says a NordVPN spokesperson. “From what it seems, the amount of stored private information will be drastically increased throughout hundreds or maybe thousands of different companies.” She adds that similar regulations have been “typically introduced by authoritarian governments in order to gain more control over their citizens.”

    Despite India having the highest VPN adoption rate last year, or perhaps because of it, the government began moving to force VPN providers to collect customer data. The government has tried to reassure the industry and its citizens that it would only take advantage of that data collection on a case-by-case basis. Many are not convinced, however, given India’s history of surveilling activists, critics, and political rivals.

    “VPNs by nature can be a privacy advancing tool and can be capable of protecting information security in multiple ways, being used by individuals and companies to secure confidential information,” says Tejasi Panjiar, Internet Freedom Foundation associate policy counsel. “They also help secure digital rights under the constitution, especially for journalists and whistleblowers, because the nature of information that’s transferred over VPNs is primarily encrypted, which allows them not only to secure confidential information but also to safeguard their own identity, protecting them from surveillance and censorship.”

    NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and Surfshark have all taken steps to remove their servers from India while still providing ways for Indian customers to connect to their VPN services.