Chairman Wheeler Plans To Finalize Broadband Privacy Rules This Year

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said that he anticipates finalizing broadband privacy rules later in 2016. Testifying at a Senate hearing, Chairman Wheeler also hinted that the final regulations could differ from a proposal he put forward earlier this year. That initial proposal would require Internet service providers to obtain consumers' consent before drawing on their Web-surfing data for behavioral targeting. Ad networks, online publishers and other online advertising companies, by contrast, typically operate on an opt-out basis. While Chairman Wheeler didn't elaborate on how the rules may evolve, he said in his prepared testimony that the Federal Trade Commission's input "has been particularly helpful."

Staff at the FTC recommended earlier this year that Internet service providers should obtain opt-in consent before using "sensitive" data for ad targeting, and allow consumers to opt out of the use of "non-sensitive" information. Some broadband carriers have argued that they should be able to treat sensitive and non-sensitive data differently. Verizon, for instance, argued in an FCC filing that it should only be required to obtain opt-in consent for "the most sensitive use cases." But privacy advocates have argued against different rules for different types of data. "A rule that varies based on sensitivity will be a much more complex, unpredictable, and less privacy protective one," privacy expert and former FTC adviser Paul Ohm recently told the agency. What's more, he adds, figuring out whether information is sensitive "requires far more invasion of privacy as well as far more surveillance."