Considered illegitimate by whom? Chinese citizens might find the requests from the Chinese government legitimate.
On the other hand, citizens of the EU might find requests from the US government illegitimate. US national security is far less a legitimate reason if you are not a citizen of the US.
We are talking about the US context here specifically and the legal process they have set up in place to ensure the rights of their citizens are balanced appropriately against the country’s national security concerns.
If you’re making a larger point that espionage is a thing however that’s a very different conversation and not a particularly fruitful one I don’t think.
In the same way that all people across the world are potential targets of collection from any group who has the capability to do so. At that point we are just back to the exact same set of arguments that apply to online advertising for example. There are things in there to be pissed about no doubt but it’s a lot more nuanced than that too.
On the other hand, citizens of the EU might find requests from the US government illegitimate. US national security is far less a legitimate reason if you are not a citizen of the US.