https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A
I think you mean "overtly mandatory" in China's case.
I think you mean "overtly mandatory" in China's case.
The overt, pervasive mandatoriness of the Chinese system is another ballgame entirely.
If the Chinese gov't shows up and asks for basically anything, of course you give it. There is no questions, no lawyers. It is how things are done.
US tech companies do have lawyers and fight back at some stuff. Think about all those defamation cases where people try to sue Twitter to get the identities of people criticizing them.
How do you think that works in the Chinese social environment?
Technical issues are a bit different though. Australian intelligence does not have rooms in any AT&T building I think. Though perhaps they perform some legal tricks to give them access and then roundtrip the info.
I hope they at least feel bad doing so.