The revelations over the last year that the NSA is basically out of control and has been collecting both meta-data and data on US and non-US citizens, using a wide variety of quasi-legal and illegal mechanisms has, quite rightly, led to a storm of anger and fury at the consequent infringements of personal liberties and privacy.
As a result, another important issue has tended to not get the airtime that it deserves. The issue is covered in the latter part of this New York Times article. Basically, if multi-national corporations and governments do not trust the security and privacy of information transmitted via digital infrastructure supplied by US corporations, it is likely that over time, those corporations and governments will procure equipment from elsewhere in the world. This will have a significant negative impact on US business competitiveness worldwide.