The debate over government surveillance highlights the need for consumers to have better control over their data, according to Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill, who today proposed a "Reclaim Your Name" campaign that would empower consumers to find out how companies are using their personal information.

The effort, which Commissioner Brill discussed at a privacy conference in Washington, D.C., is still in the planning stages, but would require data brokers to create an online portal where consumers could see what type of data was being collected about them and opt out of that data collection if the broker is selling information for marketing purposes, or correct any information that is wrong.

The effort would also require greater transparency and notice to consumers as it relates to sensitive data, like health conditions, sexual orientation, and finances.

Commissioner Brill said she has been speaking with some data brokers over the past few months, and "they have expressed some interest in pursuing ideas to achieve greater transparency." But she called on the entire industry to "come to the table to help consumers reclaim their names."

The commissioner said the initiative should also extend to credit reports. "There are simply too many errors in traditional credit reports," Brill said. "The credit bureaus need to develop better tools to help consumers more easily obtain and understand their credit reports so they can correct them."

Brill said she's asked major credit reporting agencies to develop a system whereby corrections made to a report housed by one agency would be applied to those held by other ones as well.

Reclaim Your Name "meshes nicely" with the FTC's efforts on Do Not Track, Brill said, which allows people to opt out of having their online activity tracked for marketing and other purposes.

"Together, these policies will restore consumers' rights to privacy that big data has not just challenged but has abrogated in too many instances," Brill said.

Brill supports legislation that would do what she has proposed, but Congress has been slow to take action on data privacy and security legislation. She pledged to "work on the contours" of Reclaim Your Name in the next few months, and called on the industry and other stakeholders to put in their two cents.

Congress has gone after data brokers in the past. Last year, for example, several House lawmakers penned a letter to nine data brokers that asked for more information about how the companies used consumers' personal information.

Further Reading

Security Reviews