• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Privacy for America

Privacy for America

Furthering Accountability and Responsible Data Practices.

  • Home
  • About
  • Overview
  • Newsroom
    • Blog
    • News
    • Press Releases
  • Contact
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Protecting Consumers by Prohibiting Harmful or Abusive Practices

December 16, 2019

In a major step forward for the privacy debate and prospects for bipartisan legislation, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) each released draft federal privacy bills last week and held a hearing to examine these proposals.

There’s a great deal of consensus between them, and one point we were particularly pleased to see agreement on: A recognition that any effort to create a federal bill should include prohibitions on specific data practices that could be abusive or harmful to consumers.

Privacy for America’s policy framework, released last week, is built around this idea. Rather than relying solely on consumers to digest confusing privacy policies, our framework would prohibit outright a range of practices that make personal data vulnerable to misuse. These include:

  • Eligibility Determinations. The framework would prevent companies from circumventing existing sectoral laws (such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act) by banning the use or knowing supply of data to make eligibility decisions—about jobs, credit, insurance, healthcare, education, financial aid, or housing—outside these laws, thereby bolstering and expanding the protections already in place.
  • Discrimination. The framework would supplement existing anti-discrimination laws by banning the use or knowing supply of data to charge higher prices for goods or services based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. The framework also would allow individuals to opt out of the development of detailed inferences and predictions about them, which can contribute to discrimination.
  • Fraud and Deception. The FTC and the states have pursued cases for decades against companies that engage in fraud and deception. This new framework would focus specifically on the use and supply of data for these purposes, banning a range of fraudulent practices designed to induce the disclosure of personal information and, more generally, material misrepresentations about data privacy and security.
  • Stalking. In recent years, the proliferation of data has made it easier to track the location and activities of individuals for use in stalking. The framework would outlaw the use of personal information for stalking or other forms of substantial harassment and would hold apps that supply data for these purposes accountable.
  • Use of Sensitive Data Without Express Consent. Importantly, the new framework would prohibit companies from obtaining a range of sensitive information that consumers care the most about—including health, financial, biometric, and geolocation information, as well as call records, private emails, and device recording and photos—without obtaining their express consent.
  • Sharing Data Without Accountability. To help ensure that companies don’t circumvent these prohibitions, firms that disclose personal data to vendors would be required to enter into contracts to make sure that data they share is used lawfully and in line with how consumers were told the information would be used. In addition, these third parties would be required to implement procedures to ensure those contractual promises are upheld.
  • Special Protections for Individuals Over 12 and Under 16 (Tweens). The framework includes a robust set of safeguards for data collected from tweens, including prohibiting companies from transferring tween data to third parties when they have actual knowledge of age. It also would ban payment to tweens for personal data, except under a contract to which a parent or legal guardian is a party. Finally, companies would be required to implement data eraser requirements allowing individuals to delete data posted online when they were tweens.

There are safe and responsible ways that companies can use data to the benefit of both consumers and the entire U.S. economy, which our framework seeks to protect. But by explicitly prohibiting harmful uses of data, we can ensure that the burden is shifted away from consumers and toward a common set of data privacy and security norms that hold companies accountable for data misuse. We urge Congress to consider these prohibitions in any final legislation to ensure that consumers’ personal data is protected.

Blog

Footer

Contact Privacy for America

To get in touch, please contact us.

  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

About Privacy for America

Learn more about us.

Read our privacy policy.

View our sitemap.

© 2023 Privacy for America. All rights reserved. Site By Prairie Marketing Inc.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT