Investors Want AT&T to Clarify Policies on Surveillance Requests

Citing concern about reports of behavior that appear inconsistent with AT&T’s pledge to protect customer privacy “to the fullest extent possible,” shareholders are asking the company to clarify how it provides information to law enforcement and intelligence agencies “above and beyond what is legally required by court order or other legally mandated process.” The shareholder proposal cites an August 2015 New York Times story which reported that as recently as 2013, AT&T shared 60 million foreign-to- foreign e-mails a day with the National Security Agency (NSA), on a voluntary basis, not required by court order.

The Times article analyzed NSA documents, one of which stated that AT&T’s relationship with the NSA was “a partnership, not a contractual relationship.” The proposal was filed by Arjuna Capital, an investment manager. Arjuna was a co-sponsor of a related 2014 shareholder proposal, which asked AT&T to publish semi-annual transparency reports on government requests for customer information. The proposal was withdrawn after AT&T, like Verizon Communications, agreed to publish transparency reports. “While AT&T must comply with its legal obligations, failure to persuade customers of a genuine and long-term commitment to privacy rights could present AT&T with serious financial, legal and reputational risks” the proposal states.