Yahoo Criticized for Ceding to Government Email Scanning Demand

Yahoo faced backlash after it was revealed it had complied with a government demand that required it to scan all of its customers’ incoming emails. To comply with the secret court order, Yahoo custom built software designed to search for email containing a digital “signature” the government had identified. After failing to disclose the directive even to its own security team, Yahoo’s Chief Security Officer resigned and members of congress demanded an immediate briefing on the program. Meanwhile, half of U.S. voters thought Yahoo had violated consumer privacy, and angry customers created a “Dump Yahoo” campaign, encouraging users to delete their accounts in the wake of the privacy and security violation.