Tech pressures Congress ahead of Patriot Act fight

Trade groups representing nearly every corner of the tech industry are putting pressure on Congress to rein in government surveillance ahead of a new battle over US spying. In a letter, a half-dozen major industry groups called for Congress to end some of the government’s most controversial spying programs, which they claim continue to erode global trust in American tech companies. “US technology providers continue to face concerns from global customers regarding the safety and security of their offerings,” the organizations wrote. "In fact, foreign competitors and foreign governments regularly seize on this opportunity to challenge US technological leadership by raising questions about our nation’s surveillance regime. “The impact of these questions continues to affect the technology sector.”

Companies represented by the groups include some of Silicon Valley’s biggest names, such as Google, Facebook, Apple and IBM. In particular, they called on lawmakers to end the government’s ability to collect bulk records about people’s communications and to force greater transparency about how government surveillance operates. The six groups behind the letter to leaders in Congress are TechNet, BSA - The Software Alliance, the Internet Association, the Information Technology Industry Council, the Software and Information Industry Association and the Reform Government Surveillance coalition.