The growing use of online technology, including social media, has made our lives easier but at a cost. The more information we put online, the greater the risk that it will be misused. A good example is a recent study by the Wall Street Journal which found that popular web sites, including Comcast.com, Microsoft's MSN, and Dictionary.com, have installed tracking tools that gather personal information about visitors to their sites. The information gathered includes details about each user's age, sex, race, income, marital status, recent purchases, and favorite movies. The question, then, is this. How can we enjoy technology's benefits while safeguarding our privacy?
Fortunately, some organizations exist that view themselves as watchdogs for privacy rights. One is the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), based in Washington, D.C. By combining technical expertise and legal know-how, EPIC has used Freedom of Information Requests, Federal Trade Commission complaints, and litigation to get the government and companies to disclose what data they are collecting about Internet users and what they are doing with it. That's important, because if they share that information, our personal information, with others, we need to know about it, and if they don't properly safeguard it, we need to know about that. For example, the body scanners in airports can store and transmit data about you, so you want that data to remain there and to be secure from hacking.
Another protection may be offered by a bill being considered by Congress. It is informally known as the Boucher Bill. It would require notice to, and the consent of, a person before collection and disclosure of personal information could take place. The questions will always remain about how technology is being used and whether it is being used to help or hurt us. As attorneys, we have to look at whether the technology violates privacy rights. In other words, we watch the watchers.
