The Yahoo advanced that the American National Security Agency (NSA) has threatened the search engine with a daily fine of $ 250,000 (more than 193 000 euros) if you do not reveal data of its users, under the rules surveillance data from online services, which the company considers unconstitutional.
Yahoo and the American government had a secret legal battle in 2008, details of which have just been revealed by the search engine. The dispute between the two parties had reached such a level that Yahoo was once threatened with a high amount of fine per day if you do not give in to the request of the NSA.
On Thursday, Yahoo made public threat after a special federal court to disclose 1,500 pages of legal documents a hitherto confidential process launched at the height of the NSA surveillance programs, involving social networks and other American Internet companies such as Google or Microsoft.
Yahoo vs. NSA case is much older than the spy scandal revealed by former computer analyst Edward Snowden, in 2013 took place between 2007 and 2008 Despite legal documents have now been revealed These do not indicate what kind of request was made to Yahoo, but the search engine indicates that the battle in the court focused on the question of whether the American constitution protects the communications of citizens of the country.
In a statement posted on its page on Tumblr, the general counsel of the search engine, Ron Bell, recalls that in 2007, the American government passed a law that allowed the request of information of users of online services, but that Yahoo refused to yield by considering the “unconstitutional” legislation, challenging “the authority of the United States Government.”
The search engine lost cause in justice and the court ordered that the requested information was delivered. The case remained confidential because it involves the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC). This court has the mission to evaluate the claims made wiretapping and surveillance by the intelligence agencies and the FBI, and its decisions are kept secret. Until last year, was kept secret the role that Yahoo had in the judicial process.
Ron Bell emphasizes that the decision to open part of the public documents of the FISC is “extremely rare”. “Now that the FISC agreed to hand over the case to our request, we are working to make available these documents,” writes responsible in his note.
Considering that this step is “an important victory for transparency “Yahoo enhances the delivery of documents demonstrates how the search engine” had to fight every step to challenge surveillance efforts of the Government. ” The result was the “imposition of a daily fine of $ 250,000″ if she refused to cooperate.
Yahoo states that continue to impose themselves against cases such as that faced and against laws that it deems “illegal , dark and abusive. “
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