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Senate Votes To Repeal Internet Privacy Rules
If you've ever browsed the internet, you've inevitably viewed things you wouldn't want to admit. Maybe you inadvertently clicked the wrong link and ended up at a website you never meant to view, or clicked on your trusted friend's link in an e-mail that turned out to be very NSFW (it's so commonplace, there's even an acronym for it, Not Safe For Work).
Internet service providers know your browsing history; this has been apparent for a long time. Heck, so does social media. This is why you see targeted advertising on your Facebook page. No matter how many times you clear your browsing history, they still know where you browsed, or what sensitive information you typed into a website.
Why? ISPs retain consumer data for purposes of monetizing and selling it. Fortunately, your privacy is protected and they cannot sell your sensitive information without your permission. Well, that used to be the case. A recently passed Senate resolution eliminated the requirement for ISPs to sell consumer data with your permission. In other words, they will sell your data without your permission, presumably without you even knowing. Rest in peace, privacy.
In a party-line 50-48 vote Thursday, senators approved a resolution to undo sweeping privacy rules adopted by the Obama-era Federal Communications Commission. If it becomes law, it would also prevent the FCC from setting similar rules again.
The resolution would undo privacy rules that ensure consumers control how their most sensitive information is used. This resolution protects the profits of billion dollar conglomerates and furthers the sad, seemingly unstoppable erosion of American citizens' privacy rights.
ACLU Legislative Counsel Neema Singh Guliani issued the following statement: “It is extremely disappointing that the Senate voted today to sacrifice the privacy rights of Americans in the interest of protecting the profits of major internet companies, including Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon. The resolution would undo privacy rules that ensure consumers control how their most sensitive information is used. The House must now stop this resolution from moving forward and stand up for our privacy rights.”
Sources and additional reading:
https://www.aclu.org/news/aclu-comment-senate-vote-allow-internet-providers-sell-consumer-data