From Marketplace, from American Public Media
What difference would an online privacy bill of rights make?
By John Moe
There's a big push in Washington right now for an online privacy bill of rights. What difference would its passing or not passing make in your life?
The idea of such a measure has been kicking around Washington for several years now. But as online tracking technology becomes more advanced and advertisers become more clever, the public is becoming increasingly nervous about just how much is known about them when they go online.
This week, the Obama administration urged Congress to approve a bill along these lines as soon as possible. This push came as Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) are said to be preparing a bill to be introduced soon. With a push from the White House and bipartisan support in the Senate, the bill might stand a good chance but it's hard to say what would happen in the House.
But what, if any, difference would such a measure make? We talk to Deirdre Mulligan from University of California at Berkeley's School of Information. She says the ability of advertisers to gather data would be curtailed and that goes well beyond what you type into websites. It goes for your shopping history, where you go on Facebook, what apps you download. Your trail is easier to follow than you realize....