On June 6, media outlets including the Washington Post and Guardian began reporting allegations that the United States National Security Agency (NSA) is collecting customer communications data from major technology companies, including Microsoft. Microsoft issued the following statement about the company’s alleged involvement in these activities:
REDMOND, Wash., June 6, 2013 – We provide customer data only when we receive a legally binding order or subpoena to do so, and never on a voluntary basis. In addition we only ever comply with orders for requests about specific accounts or identifiers. If the government has a broader voluntary national security program to gather customer data we don’t participate in it.
