India ranks first in South Asia for government requests for user data from Big Tech companies

The firm uses information from transparency reports published by four major tech companies – Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft. Identifying 177 countries whose government agencies have requested user data from these companies between 2013 and 2021, the report found that the US and the EU requested data the most. The two countries accounted for around 60% of all accounts of interest from 2013 to 20121.

In 2021, while Apple received 75,550 government requests for user data, Google received 732,773 requests, Meta 716,108, and Microsoft 92,161 requests. The four companies submitted user data for more than two-thirds of requests: Apple (81.6%), Meta (71.7%), Google (71%), and Microsoft (68.2%).

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“Besides requesting data from technology companies, authorities are now exploring more ways to monitor and tackle crime through online services. For instance, the EU is considering a regulation that would require internet service providers to detect, report, and remove abuse-related content,” said Gabriele Kaveckyte, Privacy Counsel at Surfshark.

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Introducing such new measures could help solve serious criminal cases. But civil society organizations have expressed their concerns of encouraging surveillance techniques to track down political rivals, the report said.

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