14 DAY TRIAL // As one of the top tech giants right now, Microsoft has tried to increase its focus on user privacy, promising not only to protect user data, but also to enhance its solutions in a way that would provide customers with all the benefits of their services without exposing their information.
In a recent interview with the Times, CEO Satya Nadella reiterated the same approach, explaining that Microsoft doesn’t want to over-monetize the data that customers share when accessing its services.
“We don’t want to over-monetise. If anything, one of the things we’ve done is to is to make sure that the utility is maximised for the users,” he said.
“Users should only use that service if that customer data creates utility for them. If you think about Linkedin, it is all about economic opportunity for the member. It’s not about taking member data and using it for something else.”
The privacy battle
As a privacy advocate, Microsoft itself was involved in a long-time dispute against the United States government, as it opposed a law enforcement request seeking access to data stored on a server overseas.
Specifically, the software giant stated that user data that’s not located in the United States shouldn’t be exposed to the government in the country, even if a court order is offered.
A warrant shouldn’t be valid beyond the borders of the country, Microsoft said in this case, explaining that otherwise customer data would thus become available to all governments worldwide regardless of the country where the information is stored.
In this interview, the company’s CEO emphasizes that sharing user data with third parties isn’t something that tech giants should agree with, clearly as a hint to other companies in the industry that have already been criticized for monetizing the information they collect from customers.