NSA spying hurting business?

Is NSA spying harming business? The leaders of the biggest technology firms in the U.S. certainly think so. And so they weren't shy about sharing their thoughts with the Pres. Obama during a recent meeting at the White House. The Washington Post recently covered this meeting. What'd they find? Tech leaders say that NSA spying revelations are harming the entire economy.

Concerns

According to the Post, the tech leaders attending were most concerned that headlines from the NSA spying scandal were encouraging buyers to back away from technology built in the United States. An executive with Cisco Systems said that he has already seen this. Tech leaders from AT&T, Verizon and IBM told the president that many of their shareholders were upset about the numerous revelations which have come out about NSA spying.

Limits

The tech leaders also had a few recommendations for Pres. Obama. They requested that the president place limits on how much spying NSA does. In addition, they requested that tech companies be given more details regarding what kind of surveillance the government is performing.

Moving forward

The Post story said that Obama told the tech companies that he understood their concerns and that he would keep them in mind as the White House completed its review of NSA surveillance programs. Tech companies are vital to the U.S. economy. They have predominantly led the country's slow but steady economic recovery. It seems sensible, then, for the White House to do what it can to keep these firms happy.