What Do the FTC and Commerce Reports Mean for the Future of Privacy?

It’s been an extremely busy few weeks in the privacy world as of late.   A little more than two weeks ago, the FTC released their long-awaited staff report on “Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change: A Proposed Framework for Businesses and Policymakers,”  and yesterday the Department of Commerce’s Internet Safety Task Force released their privacy Green Paper,  “Commercial Data Privacy and Innovation in the Internet Economy: A Dynamic Policy Framework.”  The reviews on both have ranged across both ends of the spectrum and have brought increased media attention to the ideas of a ‘Do Not Track’ list, a ‘Privacy Bill of Rights,’ and the creation of a Federal CPO.

But now it’s time for a little more research into what privacy enthusiasts really think of these two reports.  What will they mean for the future of privacy and how will they impact our national policy when it comes to privacy protections for consumers?  Will they spur legislation or will the industry see them as a signal to start embracing stronger self-regulation mechanisms?

We want to know what privacy enthusiasts think of the latest reports from the FTC and Department of Commerce so we’re asking all those interested to participate in a brief survey.  The survey can be seen here (link expired) and should take no more than five minutes to complete.  All participants should complete the survey no later than January 7, 2011, and we will announce the results shortly thereafter.

We look forward to your thoughts and thank you in advance for participating!