U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal plans to introduce legislation that will enable the Federal Trade Commission to create and enforce privacy and data security rules concerning internet service providers or ISPs.
The proposed Managing Your Data Against Telecom Abuses (MY DATA) Act follows last week”™s Congressional Review Act resolution signed by President Trump that formally rescinded the Federal Communications Commission”™s broadband privacy rules requiring ISPs to get the consent of their subscribers prior to the sharing or sale of personal consumer information to third parties. It is not certain when Blumenthal will formally introduce the bill or if any of his Senate colleagues will co-sponsor the legislation.
“Signing up for internet should never mean you have to sign away your rights to privacy,” the Connecticut Democrat said in a statement released by his office. “Unfortunately, the president and Republican lawmakers have just given broadband providers a green light to sell your private data to the highest bidder ”“ deeply personal information including financial and medical data. My bill makes sure the FTC has the authority it needs to restore consumer control and allow individuals to use the internet without fear of invasive and intrusive practices that turn our private lives into yet another commodity on the open market.”
