[LINK] RFC: Draft APF Policy re Location Data

[stephen at melbpc.org.au]

Roger posts,

>                      Australian Privacy Foundation
>                    Policy Statement re Location Data
>            http://www.privacy.org.au/Papers/LocData-1105.html
> 
>                 Feedback to mailto:chair at privacy.org.au


This does seem comprehensive, with a clear rationale, and, call to arms. 

Specifically .. "Clause 19. Parliaments must create legal protections,
which must be clear, must be sufficiently technologically-specific to
be effective, must have teeth, and must be enforced."

Once again, may one make the special case for children? In some ways any
such legislation will be specially appropriate if specifically targetted
for minors, at least initially anyway. They're perhaps, more of a target
for tracking, due to relative technical innocence & their consumer power.

For eg, the US is rapidly moving in this direction, for kids, and adults:

 http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2385045,00.asp

'Do Not Track' Legislation Is On the Move

A draft bill released Friday would amend the Children's Online Privacy 
Protection Act of 1998 to tack on an additional "do not track" clause to 
protect the personal information of children. 

Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), the co-
chairmen of the bi-partisan Congressional Privacy Caucus, released the "Do 
Not Track Kids Act of 2011," which would enact numerous protections for 
children and teens, including the requirement of parental consent to 
collect personal information. 

A second bill, the Do-Not-Track Online Act of 2011, will be introduced by 
Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-West Virginia), the senator said Friday. 
The bill is the second bill to include "Do Not Track" provisions in the 
House; in February, Rep. Jackie Speier, a Democrat, introduced the Do Not 
Track Me Online Act of 2011, which would give the Federal Trade Commission 
18 months to come up with standards for companies to follow when it comes 
to online tracking. It was referred to the Subcommittee on Commerce, 
Manufacturing, and Trade, and has remained there since. 

"Do not track" legislation protecting consumer information from being used 
without consent has moved forward quickly in the past months. In general, 
Web sites that wish to use the information say they do so to offer 
consumers improved, personalized services. 

"I have continually supported legislative initiatives seeking to increase 
the protections for all consumers," Barton said in a statement. "I believe 
that it is imperative to ensure that consumers' personal and private 
information remains personal and private. I understand that gathering some 
information from consumers is necessary when conducting business online, 
however it is never acceptable to abuse that information. The Do Not Track 
Kids Act of 2011 is a bill that makes protecting our children a priority, 
and I believe that this is a great first step in consumer privacy." 


Google, Microsoft, and Mozilla already incorporate versions of "do not 
track" into their browsers; Mozilla added it to the beta version of 
Firefox 4 in February. Microsoft Tracking Protection was included in the 
release candidate of Internet Explorer 9, which was announced earlier this 
year. Google, meanwhile, has a Chrome extension called Keep My Opt-Outs, 
which empowers users to permanently opt out of ad-tracking cookies.

A similar bill in California, SB 761, introduced by Sen. Alan Lowenthal, D-
Long Beach, would require companies doing business in California to 
require their Web sites to honor "do not track" requests sent from a 
user's browser. The State Senate Judiciary Committee voted to move it 
forward in the Senate by a 3-2 vote. 

Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, led 
the campaign that helped enact the Children's Online Privacy Protection 
Act of 1998. He applauded the draft bill. 

"Young people are targets of a powerful digital data collection system, 
tracking them wherever they are – on mobile phones, social networks, 
playing games, or browsing the Web," Chester said in a statement. "We need 
a 21st century privacy law that protects children and teens. The Do Not 
Track Kids Act will ensure they are protected online. Parents and those 
who care about America's youth should support this bill. The 'dynamic duo' 
of privacy – Reps. Joe Barton and Ed Markey – deserve praise for 
spearheading this important new legislation." 

The proposed Markey-Barton bill would require online companies to explain 
the types of user information that sites could use, and the policies for 
collecting it; and it would prohibit the sites from using the information 
of children and teens for targeted marketing. In addition, the bill would 
establish a "Digital marketing Bill of Rights" for teens, limiting the 
collection of personal information as well as location data. It would also 
require parents to give their consent before such information could be 
used, and allow them to "erase" the publicly available information when 
they choose. 

Rockefeller's legislation, meanwhile, would The Do-Not-Track Online Act of 
2011 would create "a universal legal obligation for all online companies 
to honor consumer choice when consumers do not want anyone to collect 
information about their online activities," as well as allow the FTC to 
enforce it. 

If a consumer does not allow his or her personal information to be 
tracked, Rockefeller said, the bill would allow companies "to collect only 
the information that is necessary for the website or online service to 
function and be effective, but then place a legal obligation on the online 
company to destroy or anonymize the information once it is no longer 
needed." 

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Cheers,
Stephen