Two senators are proposing legislation that would prevent websites from tracking users against their will.
The “Do Not Track Online Act of 2015,” proposed on Tuesday by Sens. Edward Markey, D-Mass., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., would direct the Federal Trade Commission to issue rules prohibiting digital content providers from “collecting personal information on individuals who have expressed” a desire not to be surveilled.
Web providers such as Google and Facebook collect information about all of their users, even after they have left the sites, in order to created targeted advertising. Amid concerns about that surveillance, consumer groups have tried unsuccessfully to obtain a “do not track” rule through the regulatory process. The Federal Communications Commission declined to issue a rule as recently as November, saying that authority to do so fell outside of its purview.
If the Edward-Markey legislation passes, it will give the FTC one year to take action. While it would prohibit the collection of data from users who opt out for advertising purposes, it would allow collection under the conditions that it is necessary to provide a service and deleted shortly thereafter.
“Every online click consumers make provides a detailed and private picture of their personal lives, and American should have control over the collection and use of this personal, sensitive information,” Markey said in a statement.
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“Consumers need this protection against invasive tracking — companies that collect private, sensitive information with every online click,” Blumenthal added.
