Mathew J. Schwartz reports: Will the future see a “Do Not Track” setting in browsers that prevents data brokers and Web sites from tracking a consumer’s every click? […] Industry groups, however, have slammed the FTC’s proposal, suggesting it would wreck the ability of Web sites to provide personalized content. “The Internet is comprised of…
Category: Business
SelectOut Founder Analyzes 1,000 Privacy Policies to Make Online Privacy Easier, Part 1
Elaine Rigoli writes: Calvin Pappas is just 19-years-old but thinks online privacy is one of the hottest topics today. While Congress debates regulating the online advertising and tracking industry, the Computer Engineering student has created a site called SelectOut to teach consumers how companies really gather and use their online data. As companies are working…
Why Is Opting Out of Online Tracking My Problem?
Ernan Roman writes: Most Web users are surprised, and then alarmed, when they realize how closely marketers scrutinize their online activities. That alarm has triggered a new and powerful consumer privacy movement, one that has led to an impassioned national debate: Should marketers be able to track consumer’s online behavior without explicit permission from the…
Privacy Please: Q&A With FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz has been encouraging ISPs and advertisers to provide a flexible, consumer-friendly regime for protecting privacy online, and specifically allowing the broadband nation to better control how their information is tracked and used online. He is encouraged by their progress, but still says the industry needs to do more, and…