We all know and agree on the fact that the government spies on us in all kinds of ways. One of the major source being the internet and phones. The government has also been caught spying on internet's biggest networks, such as Microsoft, Google, Yahoo, e.t.c. One that decided to take a serious action, is Microsoft.
Due to many concerns of their customers/users over their data being invaded by the government, and Microsoft itself having 'share their concerns(customers)', Microsoft is going to protect their network from the constant spying of the government by improving encryption, software code transparency and by legal means. On their Official Blog, Microsoft has stated:
Like many others, we are especially alarmed by recent allegations in the press of a broader and concerted effort by some governments to circumvent online security measures – and in our view, legal processes and protections – in order to surreptitiously collect private customer data. In particular, recent press stories have reported allegations of governmental interception and collection – without search warrants or legal subpoenas – of customer data as it travels between customers and servers or between company data centers in our industry. If true, these efforts threaten to seriously undermine confidence in the security and privacy of online communications. Indeed, government snooping potentially now constitutes an “advanced persistent threat,” alongside sophisticated malware and cyber attacks.
They have also stated that "In light of these allegations, we’ve decided to take immediate and coordinated action in three areas". The three areas being:
- Expanding encryption across their services.
- Reinforcing legal protections for their customers’ data.
- Enhancing the transparency of their software code, making it easier for customers to reassure themselves that their products do not contain back doors.
According to Microsoft, "All of this will be in place by the end of 2014, and much of it is effective immediately". We hope that, if this does not stop the snooping, it could at least make it less. It would be great if other companies would also take actions regarding the user/customer data being invaded, and that they take their users/customers' privacy more serious!
Muhammad Junaid
Muhammad Junaid is the writer of Entertainment Ghost. He writes articles, reviews, previews and entertainment news about gaming, technology, the media and so on. You can follow him on Twitter @Mr_MJunaid and Facebook MJunaid
