The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has published the third edition of its “Who Has Your Back?” report for 2013. As an organization dedicated to defending civil liberties in the digital world, the EFF’s annual review helps consumers identify which service providers are taking meaningful steps to protect user privacy and resist government overreach.
The report uses a six-point star system to evaluate companies on concrete privacy and transparency practices. Each star represents a distinct best practice:
- Requires a warrant for content
- Tells users about government data requests
- Publishes transparency reports
- Publishes law enforcement guidelines
- Fights for users’ privacy rights in courts
- Fights for users’ privacy rights in Congress
The findings reveal a clear divide between different sectors. Internet service providers (ISPs) performed the worst overall: Comcast earned two stars, AT&T received only one, and Verizon received no stars. These results underscore the EFF’s concern about ISPs’ limited commitments to protecting customer data from government demands and highlight the need for greater transparency and legal resistance.
On the positive side, some companies distinguished themselves with full or near-full scores. Independent provider Sonic.net earned all six stars, demonstrating a comprehensive commitment to transparency and legal protections for users. Social networks and major tech firms also showed strong results in many cases: Twitter received all six stars, signaling robust practices around notifying users and resisting inappropriate demands. LinkedIn earned five stars, missing only the pledge to “fight for user privacy in courts.” Foursquare received four stars, Facebook three, Tumblr two, and MySpace received none.
Among the major technology companies, results varied. Google scored five stars, falling short only on notifying users about government data requests. Microsoft earned four stars, while Apple — despite considerable public attention and a passionate user base — scored just one star. These mixed outcomes may surprise some observers and suggest that popular perception of a company’s stance on privacy does not always align with its formal policies and documented practices.
Summarizing the report’s most striking takeaways: the EFF advises consumers to be wary of certain ISPs and platforms that do not meet basic transparency and accountability standards. The findings lead to blunt, practical guidance: be cautious about AT&T, MySpace, Apple, and especially Verizon in terms of their demonstrated commitments to user privacy.
For companies that scored poorly, the report lays out clear steps they can implement to improve privacy protections and public trust:
- Publish transparency reports that disclose the number and type of government data requests.
- Challenge improper or overbroad requests in court, as other companies have done when faced with National Security Letters or similar demands.
- Notify users when their information is sought by the government, except where legally prohibited.
- Advocate for user privacy protections before legislative bodies.
- Require a warrant before turning over customers’ content to law enforcement.
- Publish clear law enforcement guidelines that explain how and when data will be disclosed.
Overall, the EFF notes progress by many service providers compared with previous years, but also expresses disappointment in the slow or non-existent improvements from several major players. The report highlights specific concerns: Amazon, which holds substantial customer data through cloud services and retail operations, had not committed to notifying users about government requests, publishing transparency reports, or releasing a law enforcement guide. Facebook had not yet published a transparency report at the time of the review. Yahoo! showed a record of defending users in court but did not qualify for recognition across other categories. Apple and AT&T, despite membership in privacy coalitions like Digital Due Process, still failed to adopt other best practices measured by the EFF. And as in past years, MySpace and Verizon earned no stars.
The EFF’s findings are intended to push companies toward higher standards of accountability and to inform the public when choosing services. The report invites reflection: are companies doing everything they could to protect user data, or should they adopt stronger, more transparent practices to match leaders like Twitter and Sonic.net? The answers will shape how consumers evaluate service providers and how the industry responds to demands for better privacy protections going forward.