Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services

Riepilogo

The Federal Communications Commission initiates a rulemaking seeking public comment on how to apply the privacy requirements of the Communications Act to broadband Internet access service (BIAS). This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) focuses on transparency, choice, and data security, in a manner that is consistent with the Commission's history of protecting privacy, the Federal Trade Commission's leadership, and various sector-specific statutory approaches, tailored to the particular circumstances that consumers face when they use broadband networks and with an understanding of the particular nature and technologies underlying those networks. The NPRM would recognize that consumers cannot give their permission for the use of protected data unless relevant broadband provider practices are transparent. The NPRM proposes a framework to ensure that consumers; understand what data the broadband provider is collecting and what it does with that information; can decide how their information is used; and are protected against the unauthorized disclosure of their information. The NPRM also seeks comment on a number of closely-related questions.