[LINK] Facebook and Google Join Forces to Oppose Privacy Bill

[thoughtmaybe.com]

  Facebook and Google Join Forces to Oppose Privacy Bill

By Adam Clark Estes 
<http://www.theatlanticwire.com/authors/adam-clark-estes/> May 17, 2011

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2011/05/facebook-and-google-join-forces-oppose-privacy-bill/37837/

How quickly Facebook and Google made up after last week's secret 
smearing fiasco 
<http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2011/05/irony-behind-facebooks-secret-pr-war-against-google/37619/>! Facebook, 
Google, Twitter, Skype and others cosigned a letter 
<http://www.scribd.com/doc/55576694/SB242CoalitionFloorOpppose> "strongly opposing" 
a bill introduced by California State Senator Ellen Corbett that would 
force sites to explain privacy settings in "plain language."

Corbett is sick 
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/17/california-internet-privacy-bill-facebook-google-opposition_n_862942.html> 
of social media companies duping people into sharing too much private 
information. Her recently introduced Social Networking Privacy Act (SB 
242 
<http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/sen/sb_0201-0250/sb_242_bill_20110502_amended_sen_v98.html>) 
would require a notice before users hand over their personal information 
to a site. In Sen. Corbett's own words 
<http://topnews.net.nz/content/214926-facebook-worked-stealth-mode-oppose-california-bill-sen-ellen-corbett>, 
"You shouldn't have to sign in and give up your personal information 
before you get to the part where you say, 'Please don't share my 
personal information." The bill would also grant parents the right to 
request photos or text be removed from any of their children's social 
networking pages within 48 hours.

Calling the bill "unnecessary" the letter from Facebook, Google and the 
other tech giants details how the bill would damage business for the 
California technology sector and violate the Constitutions of both the 
United States and California based on First Amendment rights. With a 
$10,000 fine for each violation, the bill could certainly have some 
repercussions on the companies' bottom lines. What a turnaround for the 
infamously censor-happy 
<http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2011/03/facebooks-middle-east-censorship-problem/36186/> 
Facebook to start defending free speech.