"Law enforcement is asking Google for its users' data more than ever -- and most of the time, they aren't getting a warrant first.

That's the takeaway from a Wednesday update to the Google Transparency Report with information that breaks down for the first time how often the FBI and local cops use a subpoena, as opposed to a warrant, to snoop on Google users' information.

From July to December 2012, Google revealed, the company received 8,438 total requests for information about 14,791 users or accounts in the United States. Requests were up 34 percent from 2011 to 2012."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/23/google-transparency-report_n_2537153.html