Growing concern over behavioral advertising, specifically ISP-based advertising has caused members of the House to propose drafting new online privacy laws. There are two sides to the argument surrounding online privacy and advertising. One side is for greater government regulation, arguing ISPs and large companies have an incredibly invasive level of data on consumers. The other side argues that the data a consumer provides online is never truly private, and regulating advertisers would only cause advertising-supported content to suffer.
In a meeting of the House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet, members discussed the Consumer Privacy Protection Act, proposed in 2002, as a starting off point for drafting new legislation. The bill would require any firm that collects consumer information to tell consumers what’s being collected and how it’s used. It would also allow consumers to act on the notification. Industry reps, committee members and privacy proponents weigh-in at Kate Kaye’s post on ClickZ.
The FTC has been taking a hard look at behavioral advertising as well, warning marketers that this may be their last chance to self-regulate. Read an interesting take on how educating consumers may be far more effective than regulation ever could at the Technology Liberation Front.
