14 DAY TRIAL // A couple of years ago, Google was one of the main opposers of SOPA and PIPA, displaying a huge black block over its logo on the day of the protests that eventually took down the Internet bills.
On Tuesday, February 11, 2014, Google didn’t take quite the same stance as the Internet protested against NSA’s mass surveillance, but it did release a public statement.
Written by Susan Molinary, Google’s vice president for public policy, the lengthy post acknowledges the fact that the debate about the nature and scope of existing laws and programs was long overdue.
“Google recognizes the very real threats that the U.S. and other countries face, but we strongly believe that government surveillance programs should operate under a legal framework that is rule-bound, narrowly tailored, transparent, and subject to oversight,” Molinary writes, somewhat drawing a line between Google and other companies.
The company hasn’t been dormant over the past several months since the NSA scandal broke out. In fact, it has expressed its desire for more transparency on several occasions, including last week, after revealing an updated version of its transparency report, including FISA requests data.
Furthermore, back in December, it teamed up with several huge tech players and unveiled a set of government surveillance reform principles, addressing many concerns over what the NSA and other government agencies had been doing.
Also, while Google may not have enlisted in Tuesday’s protests, it does support both the necessary reforms and the same legislative bill as The Day We Fight Back does.
“The USA Freedom Act reflects some of the key recommendations made by the President’s Review Group on Intelligence Communications and Technologies as well as the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. We support this legislation and we urge Congress to enact it into law,” Molinary wrote.
Google also notes that there’s more that can be done. The Congress should update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) to require government entities to obtain a warrant before they can compel online companies to disclose users’ content.
“We will continue to press Congress to adopt these important measures, which would represent significant progress in the broader effort to reform government surveillance laws. If you want to receive updates from us, please visit google.com/takeaction and sign up,” Molinary concludes her message.