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Press Release Monday, May 22, 2000 |
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Consumers Union urges Congress to give
Federal Trade Commission more authority to help safeguard online
privacy
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is expected
to present Congress today with recommendations for new privacy rules
for Internet businesses.
Consumers Union (CU) has expressed great concern about the ways
that Internet companies collect and use private information about
consumers.
The May 2000 issue of the CU publication Consumer Reports featured
a special report ("Big Browser is Watching You") about how companies
gather and use personal data about even the most casual Internet
users, often without the consumers' knowledge.
Based on Consumer Reports' findings, CU wrote the FTC to urge
regulators to step up their efforts to help consumers protect their
online privacy.
Frank Torres, legislative counsel for CU, made the following
statement today:
"This request by the FTC for greater authority in regard to online
privacy is long overdue. Self-regulation alone is clearly not
working. The industry has offered a lot of lip service about
protecting people's privacy, but it has amounted to very little in
the way of real protection.
"In making the argument for self-regulation, Microsoft cites a
Forrester Research study of online users in which 67 percent said
they were 'extremely' and 'very' concerned about releasing personal
information over the Web. Microsoft uses these figures to
demonstrate its concern about privacy, but from our perspective,
these figures merely show how little consumers trust the current
system of self-regulation. Consumers want greater privacy
protections than Internet businesses are providing them.
"Rather than stifle e-commerce, as some critics have charged,
tougher privacy rules would actually boost consumers' confidence in
e-commerce. If Internet businesses are to grow and succeed,
consumers must have more assurances that their private information
will be treated responsibly.
"While we have yet to see the all of the FTC's recommendations, we
believe that the agency's principles are sound and the intent is
appropriate. We urge Congress to act on these recommendations as
soon as possible. The longer Congress waits to act, the greater the
erosion in privacy and the greater the loss in consumer
confidence."
Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, is an independent nonprofit testing, educational and information organization serving only the consumers. We are a comprehensive source of unbiased advice about products and services, personal finance, health, nutrition and other consumer concerns. Since 1936, our mission has been to test products, inform the public and protect consumers.
