The proposal to protect consumer's internet privacy has been released by the US communications regulator. This regulation, however, will not bar other forms of data collection practices.
The regulations would include broadband providers to get consumer consent regarding data collection, protect consumer's personal information and also report any breaches of the regulations. The current practice is that these providers collect data from consumers without their knowledge for the purpose of advertising.
Tom Wheeler of the Federal Communications Commission did not prohibit internet providers from using or sharing customer data for any purpose. This regulation, however, will not affect sites such as Twitter, Google, and Facebook, as per Reuters.
The executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, Jeffrey Chester, praised the proposal, saying it is nothing short of a historic moment. He added that unlike the Federal Trade Commission, the FCC has the legal powers to enact safeguards that will allow individuals to control how much personal information will be used or gathered from them, New York Times reports.
In the new regelation, providers need to protect data under a security standard. They will need to notify their consumers if breaches happens no later than 10 days. According to CNet, the FCC said that it plans to give a stricter privacy regulations after it made a deal with Verizon who agreed to pay $1.35 million for using technology that allowed their marketers to track down the online activity of their customers.
The summary of the proposal stated that consumers should not sign away their rights for their privacy. As of the moment, internet providers can still use the consumer's internet data to put together large amounts of information which may include their chronic medical condition and even their financial status. The FCC is now creating different standards and regulations with companies such as Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc., and Google.
