Which Companies Respect and Protect Your Rights?  Google, Apple, Verizon, etc

Which Companies Respect and Protect Your Rights?  Google, Apple, Verizon, etc. rated by the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Good to know as my smartphone hardware and +Verizon Wireless contract come up for refresh:
Study: Apple Definitely Doesn’t Have Your Back
"Out of the six possible ways Apple could protect its customers from law enforcement intrusions into information, the company failed on five. The results were disturbing: Apple won’t require a warrant for investigators to access your content; won’t tell you when the government tries to access information; doesn’t publish its transparency policy; doesn’t publish the guidelines dictated by law enforcement; and, most damningly, won’t show up in court to defend a user’s rights."
http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/study-apple-definitely-doesnt-have-your-back.html/

It's Time for Transparency Reports to Become the New Normal
"When we first launched Who Has Your Back in 2011, only +Google published the number of demands it had received for user data, ranging from subpoenas and warrants issued by courts to written requests from law enforcement. Since then, several more companies have stepped up, including the ISP +Sonic.net, cloud storage providers +SpiderOak and +Dropbox, as well as social media companies such as +LinkedIn and Twitter (which published its latest transparency report on Monday)."
"As the company behind a telco with hundreds of millions of customers, Microsoft possesses a treasure trove of +Skype caller data that is potentially of interest to governments and law enforcement. Without a transparency report, concerned and vulnerable users all over the world are left guessing about what Microsoft might be doing with that data."
"Surveillance is a growth industry: every existing report shows that the number of government requests for user data is rising, and this trend shows no sign of abating. Transparency reports are essential to helping users understand the scope of Internet surveillance and make informed decisions about storing their sensitive data or engaging in private communications. "
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/01/its-time-transparency-reports-become-new-normal

EFF: Twitter Scores, Verizon Fails At Protecting User Privacy
"The worst performers in the EFF's round-up of privacy advocacy? Social media platform +Myspace and cellular carrier Verizon, which were awarded no stars at all. Apple, +AT&T and Yahoo, only received one star apiece, with the latter getting the award for pushing back in the courts and the other two companies achieving the fighting for users' privacy in Congress star."
http://readwrite.com/2013/05/02/eff-vendors-better-at-protecting-user-data-from-government-overreach

Embedded Link

Study: Apple Definitely Doesn’t Have Your Back
Though Apple has some of the world’s most loyal customers, it’s safe to say the company won’t return the favor.

Google+: Reshared 15 times
Google+: View post on Google+