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Oct. 17, 2007

Three of the largest telecom companies in the U.S., Verizon, AT&T and Qwest have sent letters yesterday to members in Congress defending their involvement (if any) in the NSA's warrantless wiretapping campaigns.

Overall, several representatives of Congress had requested letters from the three companies asking them to explain the nature of their participation in any government surveillance programs.

With the full support of the FCC, Verizon, AT&T and Qwest declined to give any specific details on their alleged participation.

The three telcos didn't share the NSA's opinion that any information sharing would jeopardize national security.

Although Verizon and AT&T in their letters were silent on the details of their cooperation, both cited legal provisions, including the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which would allow them to share customer records with government and law-enforcement agencies without a specific court order.

Verizon and AT&T also added that it shouldn't be the telecom's place to judge the legality of requests from the government for more information.

In its letter, Verizon states "Congress has properly enacted a number of protections for telecommunications providers that assist the government. These statutory provisions are consistent with long-standing common law principles, which allow citizens to rely on government's judgment when it asks for assistance."

For its part, and according to a report in The New York Times, AT&T in its letter said "Given the focus of your questions, our company essentially finds itself caught in the middle of an oversight dispute between the Congress and the executive relating to government surveillance activities."

Qwest reportedly didn't comply with the government's request for customer records, but it also hasn't come out one way or another.

Additionally, the three telecoms are facing plenty of privacy suits, and the Administration has been pushing for retroactive immunity to protect them from legal action due to their possible cooperation with the government's surveillance campaigns.

AT&T's letter strongly objected to the lawsuits, calling them unfair. According to the Times report, AT&T said, "carriers who are alleged to have cooperated with intelligence activities are faced with years of litigation, at great financial and reputational cost."

The representatives in Congress are looking to understand the carriers' role in the government's eavesdropping programs as it continues to debate renewing rules governing surveillance programs.

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Source: Wireless Week