Internet Privacy- More Questions than Answers

Recent Senate hearings pointed out that there are far more questions than answers when it comes to web privacy. For example: If "personally identifiable information" is to be guarded by the law, what constitutes personally identifiable information? Should a person's numerical Internet address be considered private? If people ought to be informed about data-collection practices, what format should the notice take? (Web sites already issue long and convoluted terms-of-service agreements that most consumers never read.) And if a company builds a profile of a consumer, should the consumer be allowed to see what's in her file?

Another thing the hearings pointed out is that the Senators who asked the questions - some so convoluted that witnesses had to ask repeatedly for explanations - are not well enough informed themselves on the topic to understand the questions or the answers. So what's the solution? Let the industry regulate itself? Some critics of regulation say  that companies have a lot of incentive to keep information private. These days it would get around very quickly if a company was handing out private info that could only come from one source.

But it is rather odd to think about Web sites collecting information about where you travel online and what you do there. One senator likened it "to having someone follow a shopper around at the mall, jotting down what they looked at and bought as they moved from store to store." For most of us that's pretty mundane, but, to my mind, kind of creepy. (This entry is linked to the Washington Post and can be read for free but you will need to register.)