Major US web companies call for tighter controls on government surveillance

Eight major US web companies, including Apple, Google and Facebook, have jointly called for stricter controls on how governments collected personal data, escalating the row over online surveillance.

In an open letter to US president Barack Obama and Congress, the companies said according to recent revelations, the balance had tilted away from the individual and in favour of  governments.

''We understand that governments have a duty to protect their citizens. But this summer's revelations highlighted the urgent need to reform government surveillance practices worldwide. The balance in many countries has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual - rights that are enshrined in our Constitution. This undermines the freedoms we all cherish,'' the letter says.

''The ability of data to flow or be accessed across borders is essential to a robust, 21st century, global economy,'' the companies argued in the list of reform principles they outlined in the letter, adding, "Governments should permit the transfer of data and should not inhibit access by companies or individuals to lawfully available information that is stored outside of the country. Governments should not require service providers to locate infrastructure within a country's borders or operate locally.''

Former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor, Edward Snowden, in June, exposed top secret government surveillance programmes that tapped into communications on cables linking overseas data centres of many IT companies.

After the disclosures many of the big internet companies warned of loss of revenue abroad as customers switched to local alternatives.

Some of the companies having a combined market capitalisation of nearly $1.4 trillion, have responded by publicizing their decision to boost encryption and security on their sites.

The companies had detailed their 'Reform Government Surveillance' campaign on a website, and called on the US government to take the lead by limiting how much user information governments could collect.

Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith said on the website, people would not use technology they did not trust. He added, governments had put the trust at risk, and governments needed to help restore it.

The campaign has also called on governments to restrict surveillance to specific, known users and not to collect data in bulk. It further asks that companies had the right to publish the number and nature of government demands for user information.

Google chief executive Larry Page said on the website, that the security of users' data was critical, which was the reason companies had invested so heavily on encryption and fight for transparency around government requests for information.

He added, this was undermined by the apparent wholesale collection of data, in secret and without independent oversight, by many governments around the world. He said it was time for reform and the companies urged the US government to lead the way.

Obama had promised to make certain reforms to NSA surveillance although he had not provided any details.

A bipartisan legislation had been proposed by the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy, and the Republican author of the Patriot Act, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner to limit the power given to US intelligence agencies in the aftermath of 9/11 and ''to put their metadata program out of business.''

However, Dianne Feinstein, the Democratic chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is sponsoring a separate bill that seeks to enshrine the right of security agencies to collect bulk data.