House Democrats raise alarms on White house privacy plan

House Democrats are voicing concerns that an expected White House plan to protect people’s online privacy could actually undermine it.

The White House is expected to unveil new legislation aiming to protect people’s privacy, but the plan could cripple the Federal Communications Commission's ability to safeguard people’s online history, lawmakers said. “This proposal by the White House sounds like it would severely undercut the FCC’s authority to prevent [Internet service providers] from using their position in the marketplace to do things like charging subscribers not to have their browsing history data monitored or setting ‘supercookies’ that allow users to be identified and tracked across the Internet,” said Rep Mike Doyle (D-PA). Details of the White House’s plan have not yet been made public, nor have they been shared with lawmakers, said House Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ). However, Ranking Member Pallone said that the head of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Lawrence Strickling, had told him that the plan “would effectively strip the FCC of its ability to regulate consumer privacy.”