14 DAY TRIAL // Redmond-based tech giant Microsoft has revealed in a new report that it provided details of 1050 users to the Australian government in the first half of 2013.
The company said that it received a total of 1219 requests for access to user data, with Microsoft granting access to email addresses, locations, IP addresses, and names for 86 percent of them.
Of course, Redmond issued a statement to explain that it only shares user details based on federal requests, as it continues to treat private information very carefully.
“We place a premium on respecting and protecting the privacy of our users,” the company was quoted as saying by the Daily Telegraph.
“At the same time, Microsoft recognises that law enforcement plays a critically important role in keeping our users and our technology safe and free from abuse or exploitation.”
As far as the rest of the world is concerned, the company received more than 37,000 requests from a total of 64 governments, including the US, UK, France, Germany, and Turkey. The company complied with 80 percent of these requests, it said, with some including what it called imminent emergencies, such as suicide threats.