LinkedIn Says No to NSA
We have covered the NSA story extensively on this site. Typically, businesses that have been contacted by the NSA are on one side or the other, and so far social networks have stood up to government requests for private information. Today, you can add another social network to that list.
LinkedIn has officially filed a demand that would allow the company to report any NSA requests. As a social network that relies on user trust, LinkedIn (like Facebook and other companies) can't risk ruining that user trust.
LinkedIns Stance
It's interesting to see LinkedIn jump into the NSA fight. So far, the company has been relatively quiet in all of this, but now the company is standing up to state that it must be able to divulge all NSA requests. There is no word yet as to whether or not LinkedIn's request will be granted, but many hope that the social network is heard.
What does all of this mean to you? Well, if social networks like LinkedIn and Facebook are allowed to disclose NSA request details, social users might not be so scared to use the networks. Basically, the fact that the government is asking companies for private details means that no information put online is safe – and that will kill social networks like LinkedIn. This is why LinkedIn, Facebook, and many other businesses want the legal go-ahead to post NSA probing details.
Waiting for a Decision
So far, the FISCA court has not responded to any requests from companies publicly. This could mean one of two things: either the court is undecided or these requests will not be granted. Which one is it? It's hard to tell right now. But, all of this news is promising for the sheer fact that some companies are standing up to the NSA.
An interesting question arises from all of this, though. Why didn't these companies balk at government privacy requests before? It seems odd that social network and businesses have been forced to give up private details for some time now, but these companies have just decided to fight these requests, doesn't it?
LinkedIn Says No to NSA: The Fight Forges On
In any case, LinkedIn (and many others) continue to fight the government. The fear here is that if the public is uncertain about what has been given over to government organizations, social networks can't be trusted, and that, in turn, may ruin reputations.
What do you think about LinkedIn's demand to list government requests? Should social networks be able to tell the public when these requests were made, or what kind of information was handed over?
