The Federal Trade Commission held a workshop on September 15, entitled “Big Data: A Tool for Inclusion or Exclusion?” where FTC Commissioner Julie Brill emphasized the push to place more scrutiny on data brokers, reaffirming ideas and objectives expressed in the FTC’s May 2014 report on transparency and accountability.
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FTC Calling for Legislation in Recent Report on Data Brokers
By Frederick Lah on
The FTC released its report “Data Brokers: A Call for Transparency and Accountability”, which calls for more transparency and accountability from the companies that collect, resell or share consumers’ personal information, generally known as data brokers. While the report mentions some of the benefits of these companies, it strongly emphasizes their associated risks, noting that data brokers often store delicate consumer information, potentially exposing consumers to fraud, theft, and other types of consumer harm. One of the FTC’s key findings was that consumers have little access or control over their information once it is provided to data brokers, sparking a call for legislative action for increased transparency and accountability. For more information on this issue, please read the latest post on our Global Regulatory Enforcement blog.
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DMA Not a Supporter of “Reclaim Your Name” Campaign
By Frederick Lah on
Back in June, FTC Commissioner Julie Brill unveiled an initiative called, “Reclaim Your Name” at the Computer Freedom and Privacy Conference. Her proposed initiative is directed to the big data industry and calls on data brokers to give consumers more control over their personal data. According to Commissioner Brill, Reclaim Your Name would “empower the consumer to find out how brokers are collecting and using data; give her access to information that data brokers have amassed about her; allow her to opt-out if she learns a data broker is selling her information for marketing purposes; and provide her the opportunity to correct errors in information used for substantive decisions – like credit, insurance, employment, and other benefits.”
Commissioner Brill followed up her remarks at the Conference with an op-ed piece in the Washington Post earlier this month, again demanding transparency from data brokers. In her op-ed, Commissioner Brill likened the efforts of data brokers who collect data on surfing habits and app usage to the type of information the NSA was collecting. She also opined that “personal data could be — and probably are — used by firms making decisions that aren’t regulated by the FCRA but still affect users’ lives profoundly” and that these decisions include whether consumers are too risky to do business with or aren’t right for certain clubs, dating services, schools or other programs.
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