Tim Devaney

Parents would have a new way of protecting their children's privacy when they are surfing the Internet under new rules proposed by the Federal Trade Commission.

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, last updated in July 2013, requires websites to obtain consent from the parents of children who are under the age of 13 before sharing their personal information.

The agency announced that it is considering a new way in which parents can verify their identity. Comments on the proposed rules are due by September 30.

Sen Lamar Alexander (R-TN) is pressing for a ban on passengers making cellphone calls during flights. Sen Alexander threw his support behind the Department of Transportation, which is expected to propose such a measure in December.

“I’m glad the Department of Transportation is serious about putting the brakes on a bad idea before it takes flight,” Sen Alexander said. The senator didn’t cite safety concerns, instead arguing that in-flight phone calls would be a sheer annoyance to other passengers forced to listen in on private conversations.

The federal consumer watchdog says mobile banking services present enormous potential benefits for low-income people. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said it will take a closer look at how mobile banking and financial services applications can empower unbanked and underbanked people to take better control of their personal finances.

"For the economically vulnerable, mobile (banking) can enhance access to safer, more affordable products and services in ways that can improve their economic lives," the agency wrote in the Federal Register.

The CFPB issued a request for information as it considers how to regulate mobile banking services. The bureau said 74,000 people each day signed up for mobile banking services in 2013, many of whom are low-income individuals whose only access to the Internet is through their phone, the agency said. According to a Federal Reserve study, 39 percent of underbanked people use mobile banking applications.

Labor activists are accusing T-Mobile of labor violations ahead of the company's annual shareholder meeting.

They say the telecommunications company is not treating US workers fairly by discouraging them from unionizing.

"Worldwide, and especially in Germany where T-Mobile’s parent company Deutsche Telekom is based, T-Mobile workers benefit from better protections than their American counterparts because of an employee union," the activists wrote in a petition to the company.

At the shareholder meeting, the Marco Consulting Group will call on T-Mobile's board of directors to conduct a human rights risk assessment. Nearly 28,000 protesters have signed the petition demanding that the company stop violating the rights of US workers.

The National Governors Association (NGA) is opposing legislation from Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Rep Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) that would ban online gambling.

"The nation's governors are concerned with legislation introduced in Congress that would ban online Internet gaming and Internet lottery sales because it challenges the federal-state relationship," the governors wrote in a letter to congressional leaders.

Backed by billionaire casino owner and conservative donor Sheldon Adelson, Graham and Chaffetz introduced twin bills in March that would ban online gambling. They argue this practice would be harmful to children who may have access to such sites from their smartphones and computers.

But the National Governors Association's Economic Development and Commerce Committee told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in the letter that they oppose the ban. The governors say it would take away states' rights to regulate gaming within their borders.

"The regulation of gaming is an issue that has historically been addressed by the states," the governors said. The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) also opposes the ban, but some Republican governors have supported the legislation.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is pushing banks and other financial institutions to post privacy disclosures online, so information about their data-sharing activities is more accessible to consumers.

The CFPB announced it is considering a new rule that is intended to limit banks' data-sharing activities and improve transparency, and claimed it would save the industry millions of dollars each year.

“Consumers need clear information about how their personal information is being used by financial institutions,” CFPB Director Richard Cordray said in a statement. “This proposal would make it easier for consumers to find and access privacy policies, while also making it cheaper for industry to provide disclosures.”

Currently, banks are required to mail privacy disclosures to their customers once a year. But the new rules would instead allow these disclosures to be posted online, under certain conditions. The privacy disclosures explain whether a bank is sharing customers' personal information, what information is being shared, and whom it is being shared with.

Two senators are urging the Department of Transportation to ban in-flight calls to prevent fights from breaking out among passengers.

Sens Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) wrote to Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx to encourage him to follow through with the ban the Transportation Department proposed in February 2014.

“We strongly support the agency's efforts to preserve the last vestige of quiet in our busy skies,” the senators wrote in the letter. The senators, who introduced the Commercial Flight Courtesy Act in December to ban in-flight calls through legislation, say cellphone conversations could create a “hostile atmosphere” for passengers. They said they worry flight crews might have to referee “senseless disputes” between passengers -- or even force air marshals to reveal their identities to break up physical altercations. “We are concerned that the addition of this entirely avoidable aggravation of a confined space will create a possibly hostile atmosphere on commercial flights,” the senators wrote.