'Do Not Track' Laws Are Long Overdue

As we’ve blogged about before, our electronic privacy laws are woefully out-of-date. The law that protects the privacy of your electronic life — email, cell phone location records, Facebook posts, search history, cloud computing documents — was passed in 1986, the same year I was born. The ACLU has repeatedly called for a reboot to bring these laws into the 21^st century, but until that happens there are smaller steps we can take to mitigate the privacy risks of logging onto the Internet.
 
One of those ways is by passing “Do Not Track” legislation. No matter where you go on the Internet, the odds are you’re being tracked. Legislation introduced last week would establish a Do Not Track mechanism that would function very similarly to a Do Not Call Registry, allowing users to restrict what companies collect about them and regain control of their privacy and online identity.
 
Online advertisers are creating profiles that contain an unprecedented breadth of personal information. Information as sensitive as the political opinions you express in a chat room can be stored in a database on the other side of the country. The Internet is one of the greatest tools at our disposal to practice our First Amendment rights, but key to technological advancement is our ability to surf and communicate online without the fear of being watched.
 
Here in Maine, we’re advancing a privacy package in Augusta that includes meaningful and concrete protections for your privacy, whether you’re online or offline. It’s time that Washington does the same.