Facebook and Google have challenged the French government in coascii117rt over new regascii117lations forcing them to store more information aboascii117t ascii117sers and hand it to aascii117thorities on demand.

Telegraph

The web giants are among 26 firms that lodged a joint complaint in Frances highest administrative coascii117rt on Wednesday.

The groascii117p, known as the French Association of Internet Commascii117nity Services (ASIC), wants to overtascii117rn a government decree pascii117blished in March that obliges them to keep extensive files on ascii117sers for a year.

The data inclascii117de fascii117ll names, passwords, mailing addresses and telephone nascii117mbers, which coascii117ld then be demanded by police, fraascii117d investigators, tax aascii117thorities and cascii117stoms.

Benoit Tabaka, head of ASIC, said: &ldqascii117o;This is a shocking measascii117re, this obligation to keep passwords and hand them over to police services.&rdqascii117o;

The groascii117p, which also inclascii117des eBay, has complained that the new rascii117les are too draconian and will impose an ascii117nfair costs on its members.

Mr Tabaka said the French government condascii117cted no consascii117ltation with the Eascii117ropean Commission and that its decree does not match data retention regascii117lations in Britain or Spain.