Microsoft, Google don't deny participation in NSA program

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Wiretapping focus shifts to email, as firms move data overseas
John Byrne
Published: Friday March 7, 2008

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Wiretapping_focus_shifts_to_email_0307.html

Microsoft declined to comment when asked about their participation in any NSA program, saying only that they have 300 million active email accounts.

Google told CNET: "As our privacy policy states, we comply with law enforcement requests made with proper service. We do not discuss specific law enforcement requests and generally do not share aggregate information about them. There are also some legal restrictions on what information we can share about law enforcement requests."

The admission comes amidst US email and Internet companies moving some of their servers overseas. According to a piece in March's edition of Harper's Magazine, AT&T, Microsoft and Google all have or plan overseas data centers in an effort by the companies to cut costs.

"Microsoft has announced plans for a data center in Siberia, AT&T has built two in Shanghai, and Dublin has attracted Google and Microsoft," Harper's notes.