Microsoft and Google have both announced intentions to sue the US government over their right to publish details about user data requests.
The companies wish to reveal more about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) orders issued to them, following exposure of the government's actions by whistleblower Edward Snowden.
In a blog post, Microsoft's executive vice president for legal & corporate affairs Brad Smith said that the two companies "remain concerned with the Government's continued unwillingness" to allow additional publishing of the data requests.
"We believe we have a clear right under the US Constitution to share more information with the public," Smith argued.
"It is vital to publish information that clearly shows the number of national security demands for user content, such as the text of an email."
However, Smith welcomed the government's decision to publish more data itself. It intends to publish the total number of national security requests for customer data in the past 12 months.
"We believe it's possible to publish these figures in a manner that avoids putting security at risk," Smith said. "And unless this type of information is made public, any discussion of government practices and service provider obligations will remain incomplete."
