IBM's Response to NSA

International Business Machines said it hasn’t disclosed client data to the US government under a National Security Agency surveillance program and would challenge any order to do so.

IBM said the government should deal directly with a client if it wants access to that client’s data, Robert Weber, IBM’s senior vice president for legal and regulatory affairs, wrote. If the US government were to impose a gag order prohibiting IBM from notifying a client of such a request, IBM would challenge the order, including taking legal action, he wrote.

“Technology often challenges us as a society,” Weber wrote. “Data is the next great natural resource, with the potential to improve lives and transform institutions for the better. However, establishing and maintaining the public’s trust in new technologies is essential.”

IBM also said it hasn’t given access to information stored on servers outside the US to the US government under a national security order. The company said it doesn’t build “backdoors” into its products for the NSA or any other government group.