Microsoft to ramp up encryption to combat NSA surveillance

Microsoft executives meet this week to consider plans to protect customer data from the NSA

Microsoft is planning end-to-end encryption of its internet traffic following concerns that the company had its network security breached as part of the National Security Agency's (NSA) internet surveillance programme.

The revelation, reported by The Washington Post, comes after the software giant announced it will introduce message encryption for its cloud-based Office 365 service early next year, automatically encrypting emails to anyone outside a company firewall.

Microsoft has been "suspicious" of NSA activity for some time, according to the newspaper. This only increased following the release of documents by Edward Snowden in October that suggested that the government security agency had cracked encrypted links at Yahoo and Google data centres.

That security breach enabled the NSA to collect information about Yahoo and Google users without the firms even knowing.

While Microsoft officials have no independent verification that the organisation has been targeted by the NSA, the company reportedly finds the prospect "very disturbing" and may even consider it as a breach of the US Constitution.

Top Microsoft executives are said to be meeting this week in order to decide whether they want to encrypt their networks and, if so, the extent to which they wish to do so.

Just last week Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer announced that the internet company will encrypt all users personal data in an effort to prevent unauthorised NSA snooping.

"There is nothing more important to us than protecting our users' privacy," she said.

"As we have said before, we will continue to evaluate how we can protect our users' privacy and their data. We appreciate, and certainly do not take for granted, the trust our users place in us," Mayer added.