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FCC Imposes ISP Privacy Rules and Takes Aim At Mandatory Arbitration (arstechnica.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The Federal Communications Commission today imposed new privacy rules on Internet service providers, and the Commission said it has begun working on rules that could limit the use of mandatory arbitration clauses in the contracts customers sign with ISPs. The new privacy rules require ISPs to get opt-in consent from consumers before sharing Web browsing data and other private information with advertisers and other third parties. The rules apply both to home Internet service providers like Comcast and mobile data carriers like Verizon Wireless. The commission's Democratic majority ensured the rules' passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissenting. Democratic Commissioner Mignon Clyburn was disappointed that the rules passed today did not include any action on mandatory arbitration clauses that prevent consumers from suing ISPs. But Chairman Tom Wheeler said that issue will be addressed in a separate rule-making. In the case of privacy rules, the FCC passed the NPRM in March and the final rules today. Clyburn argued that the FCC could have imposed mandatory arbitration restrictions today, because the privacy NPRM sought public comment about whether to ban mandatory arbitration. Under the FCC rules, ISPs that want to share consumer data with third parties such as advertisers must obtain opt-in consent for the most sensitive information and give customers the ability to opt out of sharing less sensitive information. Here's how the FCC describes the new opt-in and opt-out requirements: "Opt-in: ISPs are required to obtain affirmative 'opt-in' consent from consumers to use and share sensitive information. The rules specify categories of information that are considered sensitive, which include precise geo-location, financial information, health information, children's information, Social Security numbers, Web browsing history, app usage history, and the content of communications. Opt-out: ISPs would be allowed to use and share non-sensitive information unless a customer 'opts-out.' All other individually identifiable customer information -- for example, e-mail address or service tier information -- would be considered non-sensitive, and the use and sharing of that information would be subject to opt-out consent, consistent with consumer expectations. Exceptions to consent requirements: Customer consent is inferred for certain purposes specified in the statute, including the provision of broadband service or billing and collection. For the use of this information, no additional customer consent is required beyond the creation of the customer-ISP relationship." ISPs must clearly notify customers about the types of information they collect, specify how they use and share the information, and identify the types of entities they share the information with.

51 comments

  1. passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissenting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Fuckers. Small government my ass, they're just sellouts.

  2. We need a workers party! by For+a+Free+Internet · · Score: 0

    Democrats, Republicans are parties of bloody, racist U.S. imperialism. Greens, Libertarians, etc. are just loser wannabe capitalist parties. For a workers party to fight for socialist revolution!

    --
    UNITE with the Campaign for a Free Internet because today, our future begins with tomorrow!
    1. Re:We need a workers party! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Give me your address. I will personally pay for your ticket to Venezuela.

    2. Re:We need a workers party! by Opportunist · · Score: 2

      Can I just stay in Europe? Saves you the money and me the hassle.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  3. Love the new FCC by TimothyHollins · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't know what's gotten into this new FCC, but I love it. I can't think of a single organization that is currently doing more for the consumer than these guys. It's like a consumer friendly tiger, or baby-safe Harambe if you will.

    I wonder how long it will take until the Comcast/Verizon/AT&T lobby shuts them down via congress.

    1. Re: Love the new FCC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      don't know what's gotten into this new FCC

      Who got into them is Tom Wheeler, an aged carrer lobbyist (President for various trade group associations including National Cable & Telecommunications Association ) that appenrently care about is lecacy...

    2. Re:Love the new FCC by mysidia · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think the FCC caught these companies off guard.... the broadband providers weren't expecting to be regulated, so
      they didn't make the right investments in getting the regulators bought off, and ensuring cronies were appointed to the
      commissions: Also, an opportunity has not yet presented itself to get FCC board people replaced;
      these folks are in for an entire administration, and it would take something like a new president coming into office,
      to give major carriers a shot at re-populating the board with their own people.....

      I expect things will be dramatically different in the upcoming years, as the broadband providers
      make larger investments in buying more politicians, and getting laws changed through congressional lobbying, and
      more influence in the selection of FCC commissioners through bought-and-paid-for government executives.

    3. Re:Love the new FCC by mrchaotica · · Score: 1

      I can't think of a single organization that is currently doing more for the consumer than these guys

      The FCC is doing some good, but the CFPB is doing more.

      --

      "[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz

    4. Re:Love the new FCC by The-Ixian · · Score: 1

      Are you calling me a baby?

      Because if you are..... WAAAAAAAHHHHHH!

      --
      My eyes reflect the stars and a smile lights up my face.
    5. Re: Love the new FCC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The funny things is that Wheeler was not only one of them he was the CEO of their own trade association.

    6. Re:Love the new FCC by ninthbit · · Score: 1

      The fact that it passed means the ISPs already have a work around ready and now that rules have been out in place theres no risk of something actually effective coming down any time soon.

      I'm guessing they'll either legally structure themselves in a way that the "ISP" isn't sharing the info, their "billing" or "customer service" subsidiary is.

    7. Re:Love the new FCC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh the special interest groups have already tried to go after Wheeler directly and failed. Then they tried going after the FCC with an injunction that says something to the effect that they are not allowed to regulate certain things that they're trying to regulate... it's actually the FTC's job. Well that one worked but FCC has done a world of good this year. Looking forward to seeing them do more good. Wheeler and FCC are still kicking ass in 2016 for the people! Nice!

    8. Re: Love the new FCC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nope, he was injected deliberately by companies that own the media. His purpose is to introduce regulations to prevent disruptive innovation. i

    9. Re:Love the new FCC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "the broadband providers weren't expecting to be regulated,"

      ?

      What planet are you from?

    10. Re: Love the new FCC by KozmoStevnNaut · · Score: 2

      And by "disruptive innovation", you mean "selling their customers' private information to the highest bidder"?

      --
      Eat the rich.
    11. Re: Love the new FCC by silentcoder · · Score: 1

      Don't forget "charging double for other websites not owned by the ISP to be useful".

      --
      Unicode killed the ASCII-art *
    12. Re: Love the new FCC by silentcoder · · Score: 3

      I get the feeling Wheeler is one of those rare people who just does his job as well as he possibly can without much caring who he is doing it for. When he led their trade association he fought for everything they wanted, when he got the job as FCC chairman - he decided to be the best FCC chairman he could be and now he was representing the people as hard as he once represented the ISPs.

      --
      Unicode killed the ASCII-art *
    13. Re: Love the new FCC by phorm · · Score: 1

      It's funny because a *lot* of people criticised his appointment due to his previous industry appointment. It looks like he turned out to be a pretty good pick after all. If anything, his background probably comes with a lot of knowledge about the skeletons various industry players have hiding in their closets.

    14. Re: Love the new FCC by silentcoder · · Score: 1

      >It's funny because a *lot* of people criticised his appointment due to his previous industry appointment
      Indeed, and 99 out of 100 times - they would be right, nearly all revolving-door candidates end up being terrible. He seems to be the 1/100 exception.

      --
      Unicode killed the ASCII-art *
  4. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by anegg · · Score: 1

    If the Republicans keep espousing a business before citizen privacy position, I might have to stop voting Republican.

  5. How do I opt out? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How many flaming hula-hoops do I have to jump through?

  6. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Where are you posting from? 1965?

  7. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If the Republicans keep espousing a business before citizen privacy position, I might have to stop voting Republican.

    That's not an entirely fair assessment of Republicans
    They espouse business before everything else [other than campaign contributions]

  8. Binding arbitration... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If only we could all strong-arm everyone else in to binding arbitration, we could get rid of the law once and for all.

    Think of all the money that would be saved!

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  10. it's a start, but what about everything else? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Removing ISP tracking shit is a start, but that's only a tip of an iceberg. What about all the other tracking shit around the web that nobody opts into? Shit, every page has got google-analytics and two dozen other random data-broker scripts.

    Yes, yes, yes, it might be possible to block a lot of that, but most people have no idea it's even happening, leave alone how, and disabling scripting breaks a lot of sites.

    The web is one giant cesspool of tracking shit.

    1. Re:it's a start, but what about everything else? by tsqr · · Score: 1

      From the FCC's fact sheet for the regulation:

      • What the Rules Do NOT Do:
      • Do not regulate the privacy practices of websites or apps, like Twitter or Facebook, over which the Federal Trade Commission has authority.
      • Do not regulate other services of broadband providers, such as operation of a social media website.
      • Do not address issues such as government surveillance, encryption or law enforcement.
    2. Re:it's a start, but what about everything else? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So what we're guaranteed to see in ads bought up to remove this regulation:

      "The FCC wants to decide whether or not your family is allowed privacy from websites and apps such as twitter or facebook"
      "The FCC is attempting to regulate small internet businesses, to stop them from operating on social media"
      "The FCC is enlarging unchecked government surveillance, even against the express concerns of law enforcement and the FBI"

  11. big business by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The Republicans are for BIG corporate business. And when you realize this, they don't look like hypocrites regarding their stances on things.

    If BIG business had a problem with anti-abortion, your can bet your ass that The Republicans would be pro-choice and fuck their base.

  12. Boilerplate auto check by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 3, Informative

    You have to go five levels deep in the menu to opt out.

    In real countries, you have to separately sign and date any opt-in that gives away your privacy, and the default is No.

    --
    -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
  13. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

    Well, once there is a Constitutional amendment requiring all citizens to be gay Muslim potheads, we can than you and all your Democrat friends for the new America.

    You don't actually even care if you make sense any more, do you?

    --
    The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
  14. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wait, so the Republicans dissenting against a very complex set of government regulation is now a strike against small government?

    And let's be very clear. This isn't privacy legislation, this is protectionism by the incumbents to prevent competition.

  15. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by whoever57 · · Score: 1

    If the Republicans keep espousing a business before citizen privacy position, I might have to stop voting Republican.

    Did I near a "whoosh" sound, or are you really serious?

    If you are serious and you think that, in the past decade, the republicans have put citizen privacy before businesses, then I have a very nice bridge to sell you.

    --
    The real "Libtards" are the Libertarians!
  16. Re: passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The constitutional amendment we should be worried about is the one mandating gun ownership and exemption from prosecution if you shoot people for reasonable cause.

  17. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "any more" pays it too much credit

  18. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All I hear is the eerie silence from your whoosh canceling out his whoosh.

  19. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by kpainter · · Score: 1

    If you are serious and you think that, in the past decade, the republicans have put citizen privacy before businesses, then I have a very nice bridge to sell you.

    Is that bridge open?

  20. What authority does the FCC have to do this? by schwit1 · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I hate mandatory arbitration too, but Congress made the Federal_Arbitration_Act and it's been upheld by SCOTUS. I don't see anything in it that exempts the FCC.

    I'm also not a fan of unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats making rules that have the force of law.

    1. Re:What authority does the FCC have to do this? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      phones and internet are special, like water and air.

    2. Re:What authority does the FCC have to do this? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I'm also not a fan of unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats making rules that have the force of law.

      Um, like the FAA does? You'd rather have all the aviation experts in Congress dictate how aircraft are maintained and crews are trained?

    3. Re:What authority does the FCC have to do this? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Those bureaucrats have only the powers delegated to them, through laws passed by elected legislators. The Constitution gives Congress "authority to regulate foreign and interstate commerce". Then Congress passes laws, like the Communications Act of 1934 (which established the FCC), empowering various agencies to "execute and enforce" their laws.

      From the Communications Act:
      "For the purpose of regulating interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire and radio so as to make available, so far as possible, to all the people of the United States a rapid, efficient, nationwide, and worldwide wire and radio communication service with adequate facilities at reasonable charges, for the purpose of the national defense, and for the purpose of securing a more effective execution of this policy by centralizing authority theretofore granted by law to several agencies and by granting additional authority with respect to interstate and foreign commerce in wire and radio communication, there is hereby created a commission to be known as the 'Federal Communications Commission', which shall be constituted as hereinafter provided, and which shall execute and enforce the provisions of this Act."

  21. Re: passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No because a big business republican decided to close the lanes to the other side because he was butt hurt by another politician

  22. A recent court case by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ISP Privacy Rules ...

    Only a few countries demand personal details be stored in the country being serviced: Most countries allow data to be shipped to a country (*cough*, USA, *cough*) with minimal data protection laws. So it doesn't stop spyware agencies like Microsoft or Yahoo, tracking agents like Facebook, or online retailers like Amazon, even in the USA. Privacy needs to be given to all subscribers by default. These rules need to be championed by the more powerful FTC, for that reason, plus the recent court case that claimed the FCC can't tell ISPs a fucking thing. I foresee another court case.

  23. Problem by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Here's the problem. Every piece of online activity at all stages are being tracked.

    - Gmail/Hotmail/Yahoo Mail being tracked by the companies
    - Email services easily accessible by the government - US AND CANADA
    - Social media Facebook/twitter tracking on virtually every website out there.
    - Even if you don't social media accounts, they are being embedded in all news websites giving them information to track you on.
    - Click tracking by services like bit.ly, facebook and google
    - Google tracking with their fonts hosted on their domains.
    - Google apis that are used by so many webpages out there.
    - Ad tracking
    - Persistent cookies
    - Tracking based on Canvas/screen resolution/ plugins information
    - Browsers calling home (IE7-10 calls home to skype domain, Chrome (even Chromium) calls home whenever the browser starts, Firefox telemetry with Google Safebrowsing on by default).
    - Operating sytems keylogging and calling home (Windows 10)
    - Cell phone OS tracking (Android), and apps like Facebook that take your private photos on your phone's contact list and upload to their servers, to populate every piece of data it can get hold of.

    You may do everything you can in your power to protect your privacy, but as soon as someone puts a picture of you on their phone contact list, install facebook there with your email address, then it's there in the databases. You're fucked.

    You can say "well, install this plugin", "Use Palemoon Browser", "add rules in your router" - but it's impossible to keep up with.
    Canada even now has a law that allows them to access your personal laptop and phone freely. They even have this propagandat-scare-tactic-pseudo-documentary-series that proudly shows their border agents accessing people's devices and forbidding them entry, always with the line "If you have nothing to hide", etc, etc.

  24. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by Plus1Entropy · · Score: 0

    Could be 1865. The party of Lincoln is as dead as he is.

    --
    Only crack the nuts that crack. You don't put the ones that don't crack in the sack.
  25. Oh Sure... by Dripdry · · Score: 1

    AT&T is really gonna let that happen....
    it would make them instant criminals. Not that it stopped them in the past, but it would instantly put them on the hook.

    This won't pass, AT&T won't stand for it. Too much revenue at stake!

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    -
  26. So, who's gonna bring it down? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Because this seems like a reasonable set of rules, so there's no way it'll be allowed to continue.

    I mean, I was reading it, and I wasn't even feeling like TWC was driving a semi with ghost-pepper spikes straight up my ass.

    So it can't possibly stand a chance.

  27. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by silentcoder · · Score: 1

    How exactly is "You can't sell my information without my permission" NOT a privacy law protection ?

    >this is protectionism by the incumbents to prevent competition.
    Yeah, republicans say this about ALL regulations up to and including antitrust law. It may be true sometimes, but you've been crying this wolf so many times the ony thing sane people can do is assume it's NEVER true.

    --
    Unicode killed the ASCII-art *
  28. Re:passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissent by PJ6 · · Score: 1

    Fuckers. Small government my ass, they're just sellouts.

    You know, I hate the whole either-you're-R-or-D thing and I hate being called one or the other, but whenever some obviously corrupt shit is happening, there's never any question as to which party is on the wrong side. Every. Time.

  29. Re: passage in a 3-2 vote, with Republicans dissen by beastofburdon · · Score: 1

    I'm all for an amendment requiring gun ownership. If you can't afford one you can be issued one.