A Verizon executive's dismissal of attempts by US technology companies to reveal US government snooping is "disappointing" but not surprising given the telco's history, said Electronic Frontiers Australia.

Verizon Enterprise Solutions president John Stratton told Fairfax Media the telco was not swayed by other technology companies' efforts to reveal the extent of US government snooping on their customers. Last week, Yahoo! chief executive Marissa Mayer and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg struck out at restrictions on their ability to tell customers when the US government had requested private information.

"This is a matter of national security": Verizon Enterprise Solutions president John Stratton. Credit:Nate Cochrane

Yahoo!, along with Microsoft and Google, is suing the super-secretive US government Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for the right to tell their customers how the US government is spying through their networks.

"I appreciate that the consumer-centric IT firms that you referenced (Yahoo!, Google, Microsoft) felt that it was important to grandstand a bit, and wave their arms and protest loudly so as not to offend the sensibility of their customers," Mr Stratton said in response to Fairfax Media's questions during an industry briefing in Tokyo.