Governments Sought Data on 38,000 Facebook Users, Report Says
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Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(SAN FRANCISCO) — Governments in more than 70 countries sought information on at least 38,000 Facebook users in the first half of 2013, according to the social network’s first report summarizing data requests across the globe.
The Global Government Requests Report includes requests made for security purposes and criminal cases and covers every inquiry Facebook received from January to June 30.
Nearly half of the accounts requested — 20,000 to 21,000 users — came from the United States. The company disclosed information for 79 percent of the applications, saying they were required by law to provide at lease some data.
India came in second, requesting information on 4,144 accounts.
In many of the cases, governments seek basic subscriber information like names or email addresses. Other requests fielded include data on IP address logs or actual content.
Facebook says it plans to release regular data reports. Other tech companies, such as Twitter and Google, have released similar data in past years.
The company holds transparency and trust as “core values,” it said on its website. The report follows controversy regarding former National Security Agency contract Edward Snowden’s allegations that major Internet companies provide information to U.S. intelligence agencies.
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio