Washington wants to know: Why can’t technology protect consumers’ privacy instead of violating it?
The Federal Trade Commission met today in Berkeley, Calif., with corporate technology leaders and privacy advocates, challenging them to create ways to protect consumer privacy online. The FTC is encouraging technology companies such as Facebook and Apple (to come up with self-regulatory tactics that will protect consumers without squashing corporate innovation.
Technology companies should be doing more to protect people, says Pamela Jones Harbour, the FTC’s commissioner. “Apple requires all developers to submit potential apps for review,” Harbour says. “Through that process, the company could do more to regulate privacy disclosures.” Similarly, she says other companies should be taking more steps to protect consumer privacy.
The brainstorming session was the second of three the FTC has held before planning to draft new laws this summer that will control how consumer information is collected and used on the Web. Scrutiny of consumer privacy violation on the Internet has grown over the past several years, as technology advancements arm marketers with new ways to target potential buyers. Companies are buying consumer data from sources such as consumer surveys, loyalty programs and Web and mobile applications to identify potential consumers who are then tracked online and off to deliver more relevant advertising.
via FTC To Silicon Valley: Tech Companies Should Protect Consumer Data – Forbes.com.
