Online privacy is one of the big raging debates in the tech world today, especially in the wake of the revelations provided by NSA & its whistle-blower, Edward Snowden. And, in the wake of these revelations and increased public outcry against government surveillance, the world's largest technological giants have called upon United States President Barack Obama to limit the government's reach of surveillance in the online world. 

According to Silicon Angle, some of the world's biggest tech companies -- including Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, AOL, LinkedIn, Twitter and Yahoo -- have come together to form a new type of special interest group: the Reform Government Surveillance group, which calls upon the government to rein in (if not end) the PRISM spy program, the NSA, and their online surveillance efforts. 

"We understand that governments have a duty to protect their citizens. But this summer's revelations highlighted the urgent need to reform government surveillance practices worldwide," they wrote. "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 change." 

Their manifesto has appeared in many outlets, according to the German broadcasting company DW, including a full-page ad in the New York Times. While they do agree that the government should keep an eye out for online crime, they should only target specific suspects (child pornographers, human trafficking, and terrorist cells, for example), and not surveillance on a mass scale. In addition, the group is calling for a free flow of information online, including across international borders, and for governments from various countries to establish an "international framework" to govern this exchange of data.

The Reform Government Surveillance group even feels that the increase of government surveillance is jeopardizing the use of technology amongst the masses. "People won't use technology they don't trust," Microsoft's Brad Smith said. "Governments have put this trust at risk, and governments need to help restore it."