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Facebook says government requests for your information are on the rise
By Nisheeth Bhakuni | April 28th, 2017
Facebook revealed today that it’s receiving more government information
requests than ever before — but that it’s also taking less content
down.
The company today released its Global Government Requests Report, which shows the number of request officials have made to Facebook for user data. The report also includes the number of items restricted or removed for violating local laws. It reads very similarly to Twitter’s transparency report released earlier this year.
In total, Facebook received 64,279 requests for data, a nine-percent increase from the first half of 2016. 26,104 of those requests come from the US, and Facebook complied about 83-percent of the time.
The idea that officials are asking for — and getting — more access to your information may sound scary, and Facebook notes that in half the cases, it was obligated by non-disclosure agreement to not inform the user their info was requested.
Considering police have proved they can catch alleged killers with the help of Facebook, it could be a positive sign. That said, Facebook complains of government warrants overreaching and lacking the tools to sufficiently challenge “defective search warrants.”
Nisheeth Bhakuni
