UPDATED 07:30 EDT / MAY 01 2013

NEWS

Privacy Concerns: Who’s Got Your Back?

What with all of the fuss about the recently rejected CISPA bill, which would have given authorities the right to demand user information from web companies without notifying the individual’s concerned, more than a few people will be on heightened alert about their privacy.

As such, they might just be interested to know which web companies they can safely trust their data with. One of the unfortunate aspects of living in this connected world, is that it’s almost impossible to avoid passing on information about yourself to such companies, or at least it is if you want to enjoy the benefits of the web. That being said, it might be impossible to avoid the web, but where your data is concerned, it might at least be possible to omit certain companies from knowing about your online activity, simply by being careful about which products, websites and services you use.

To facilitate this, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has just published a report titled “Who Has Your Back,” which details 18 of the biggest web companies around, and ranks them according to how well they treat their user’s privacy.

Who Has Your Back covers quite a few different areas, for example, listing which companies require a warrant before consenting to government data requests, and which ones inform their users about such requests. It also sheds some light on which companies actually publish transparency reports, and which ones have a record of fighting for their user’s rights in Congress and/or the courts.

Sadly, only two companies received full marks for their efforts to keep user data private, namely Sonic.net and Twitter. That might be a pretty disappointing tally, but worse still is the revelation that Verizon and Myspace.com do absolutely nothing to protect their user’s data, according to the report.

Other poor performers include Apple, AT&T and Yahoo, scoring a measly one point each. Apparently, Apple and AT&T have both fought for their user’s privacy rights in Congress before, while Yahoo has gone to court to do the same thing, but alas, that’s about the only real efforts they have made.

One of the better performers was Facebook, which, considering half the world seems to be on there these days, is probably a good thing. The world’s biggest social media network scored 50% in the report, because they insist on a warrant before giving out any data, they fight for user’s rights in Congress, and they also publish law enforcement guidelines for users. Microsoft landed just above Facebook, scoring four out of six points, with the black marks against it being that it never informs users of government data requests, and it doesn’t much like going to court.

Almost there but not quite is Google, which gets an almost-perfect score. The only thing it does wrong is that it never remembers to tell users when the government has made a request for their data. Meanwhile, Dropbox, LinkedIn and Spideroak all just missed the maximum score, because they’ve never gone to court to fight for their user’s rights.

The report makes for an interesting read and helps us to know which companies are more trustworthy when it comes to our personal data, but more than that, probably the biggest revelation is that in fact, your data really isn’t that safe with anyone. Even with Sonic.net and Twitter, while these companies might fight for your rights and let you know if anyone’s snooping on you, at the end of the day they can and will give up your information if the government asks (so long as it follows procedure). Nevertheless, it’s good to know that some companies do at least make an effort on your behalf. And it’s also good to know which companies don’t give a damn.


A message from John Furrier, co-founder of SiliconANGLE:

Your vote of support is important to us and it helps us keep the content FREE.

One click below supports our mission to provide free, deep, and relevant content.  

Join our community on YouTube

Join the community that includes more than 15,000 #CubeAlumni experts, including Amazon.com CEO Andy Jassy, Dell Technologies founder and CEO Michael Dell, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, and many more luminaries and experts.

“TheCUBE is an important partner to the industry. You guys really are a part of our events and we really appreciate you coming and I know people appreciate the content you create as well” – Andy Jassy

THANK YOU