Tech giants, including Google, Facebook and Apple, have sent an open letter to President Barack Obama and Congress, calling for tighter controls on the collection and surveillance of personal data, Reuters reports (via The Chicago Tribune). In light of the cables leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, the companies are led by a sense of urgency to call on government to reform electronic privacy laws. The ACLU has advocated for the Electronic Communications Privacy Act -- a law that was enacted in 1986 -- to be updated to reflect today's growing online privacy concerns. The open letter states:
"The balance in many countries has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual - rights that are enshrined in our Constitution. This undermines the freedoms we all cherish. It's time for a change."
