Digital Privacy is On the Hotseat

Recently I’ve begun discussing privacy more regularly and this is going to increase as Congress continues to discuss new measures that could have a significant impact on a number of large companies in the industry. Last week I discussed how your offline life could soon be public thanks to the combination of Facebook Connect and RFID technology. This is taking place in the not so distant future and even Amiando, an event registration software, has stated their intention to leverage Facebook Connect.

Over the next 12 months, digital privacy is going to move to the center stage as activities that have gone unmonitored for the past decade are being debated in Congress. Yesterday, a BusinessWeek article revealed more details about at least one bill being ushered by Representative Edward Markey:

Dubbed the Online Privacy Bill of Rights, the law may require companies to get approval from consumers before collecting information about their Web-surfing habits, a process known as behavioral targeting that helps Web sites more strategically place ads. The legislation may also demand that companies disclose more information on how they collect and use people’s Web-use data.

Behavioral targeting is the primary concern for Congress but further investigation will most definitely lead to new policies. As such, large companies from Facebook to Google are beginning to perk up as Congress prods around. Some of the investigations have even driven Yahoo!, Google, Microsoft, and AOL to enable users to opt-out of advertising all together.

As the debate begins to heat up over user privacy rights, Social Times will be increasing our coverage of the topic. This is an issue of critical importance. I have even gone so far as to success the formation of an organization that oversees digital privacy and handles investigations related to digital privacy rights. Do you think digital privacy requires the creation of a formal organization?

Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. Other speakers include Morin Oluwole (Facebook), Tim Devane (bitly), and SocialTimes' writer Devon Glenn.   Register now.