A recent report by Surfshark highlights an increase in requests for user data from global governments to Big Tech companies like Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Meta. The study, which analyzed the period from 2013 to 2021, shows a 25% increase in requests for personal user data in 2021, following a 38% increase in 2020. Meta had the most accounts of interest from authorities, with two out of five accounts hosted by the platform being requested during the study period.
The report also reveals that 60% of requests came from the United States and Europe, with the US requesting more than double the accounts per 100,000 users than all countries in the European Union combined. The disclosure rate of user data by tech companies has increased by nearly 71%, with Apple leading in disclosing such information. However, decentralization and Web3 tools have been touted as solutions to overcome Big Tech’s monopoly on user information.
