Apple, Google stand with Microsoft against fight over US gag orders

This April, Microsoft sued the US government over the right to tell its customers when the authorities ask it to hand over data. Redmond says the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, which lets officials bar companies from telling customers when officials want their info is unconstitutional, not only violating its First Amendment rights, but also the Fourth Amendment's right to be notified when the government searches and/or seizes property.

Though the Justice Department insists that Microsoft has no grounds for its lawsuit, the company has found some crucial support from the likes of Amazon, Apple, Google and Mozilla who have contributed to a friend-of-the-court brief supporting Microsoft's case against the US government.

However, it’s not just the tech industry doing the backing. Oil giant BP, Fox News, Electronic Frontier Foundation and even five former Department of Justice and FBI officials are supporting Microsoft.

According to the Justice department, Redmond has no case. They say there are steps to protect rights and that there's a "compelling" interest in keeping criminal investigations secretive. However, as with tech companies supporting Apple in its battle against the FBI, the brief is a reminder that any ruling will have an effect on the rights of many people, not just Microsoft's users.