Across the United States, evolving data collection and processing practices and advances in artificial intelligence are driving new digital services, technologies, and socially beneficial research – while also raising new opportunities, risks, and questions for individuals and communities. In response, state and federal policymakers are considering new legislative and regulatory frameworks on three interconnected fronts: comprehensive consumer privacy laws that establish baseline rights and protections for personal data across the economy; frameworks that target specific sectors and practices such as automated decisionmaking, biometric identification, companion chatbots, data-driven pricing, data brokerage, frontier AI model safety, genetic data, and health data; and youth-specific privacy and online safety laws that set distinct rules for minors. These three tracks rarely stay in their lanes: a comprehensive privacy law may include AI provisions, an AI safety bill may carve out rules for minors, a youth online safety law may hinge on biometric age verification. Understanding the landscape requires understanding both the individual pieces and how they fit together.
FPF’s U.S. Legislation team provides expert, independent, pragmatic analysis of state and federal legislative and regulatory approaches to privacy, AI, and youth online safety – three distinct but increasingly intertwined issue areas. The team tracks emerging proposals, compares new laws against existing frameworks, analyzes implementation and compliance implications, and helps policymakers and stakeholders understand how legal requirements interact with current technologies, business practices, and data uses.
Through reports, blog posts, legislative and policy analyses, webinars, in-person and virtual peer-to-peer gatherings, and educational programs, FPF helps the broader technology policy and governance community understand the mechanisms and strategies available to protect privacy, promote responsible AI development and deployment, and advance youth online safety. FPF does not typically support or oppose particular bills. Instead, the U.S. Legislation team focuses on explaining the practical and legal implications of proposals – individually and as they interact with one another. This work helps ensure that privacy, AI, and youth safety compliance and policy strategies remain future-looking, adaptable, and workable for the continued, beneficial use of data and AI.
FPF’s U.S. Legislation team is led by Tatiana Rice, Senior Director.
Jan. 25, 2011 – Google, Mozilla Try to Preempt Regulation, AdWeek News
“There’s no doubt legislators will hold hearings and introduce bills. The question is whether they see leading practices as the ones they want to enshrine,” said Jules Polonetsky, director of the Future of Privacy Forum. “Legislators aren’t going to drop the notion of legislating. On both sides of the aisle, there is a desire to […]
Privacy Insiders Weigh In on FTC and Commerce Reports
Over the past few weeks, the Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) has been taking an informal poll from many of its advisory board members, blog readers and Facebook fans to gauge their thoughts on the recent privacy reports released by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Commerce. The FTC report was entitled, “Protecting […]
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 […]
FPF Statement on Department of Commerce Privacy Report
Future of Privacy Forum Releases Statement on Department of Commerce Privacy Report Co-Chairs Available for Additional Comment WASHINGTON – Today, the Internet Policy Task Force at the U.S. Department of Commerce released their Draft Privacy Green Paper entitled, “Commercial Data Privacy and Innovation in the Internet Economy: A Dynamic Policy Framework.” The Future of Privacy […]
Commerce Privacy Report: FPF Comment
The report is a sophisticated effort to advance consumer privacy without thwarting innovation. Although it sets a framework that will influence legislation, it provides a creative alternate path for mode of government initiated self regulation, with advocates at the table and the FTC providing enforcement. If businesses respond by taking to call to serious engage […]
Future of Privacy Forum Releases Statement on Federal Trade Commission’s Privacy Report
WASHINGTON – The Federal Trade Commission released their preliminary staff report on “Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change: A Proposed Framework for Businesses and Policymakers” on December 1. The Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) released the following statement in response to the report. This statement should be attributed to Jules Polonetsky and/or Christopher Wolf, co-chairs of the Future of Privacy Forum:
FPF to host event, "Do Not Track" Demystified
FPF will host an expert event entitled, “Do Not Track” Demystified. The discussion comes on the eve of a Congressional hearing to examine the need and feasibility of a federal law to control the tracking of consumers’ online activity for marketing and analytic purposes. This program will examine the role of technology in empowering consumers […]
We Need an Official To Guard Our Privacy
Gordon Crovitz is wrong to equate the idea of a senior U.S. privacy official (as he provocatively put it, a “privacy czar to regulate the Internet”) with the proposal in the European Union of a “right to be forgotten.” (“Forget Any ‘Right to Be Forgotten,‘” Information Age, Nov. 15). It is precisely because of international […]
Topsy Turvy World of Privacy
Topsy Turvy World of Privacy: World Privacy Forum blasts FTC for not taking action against companies who falsely claim they are in Safe Harbor or who don’t live up to Safe Harbor committments. Advocates critique FTC for not taking enforcement action on numerous complaints they file and argue the FTC support for self-regulation is misguided, […]
Summary of Draft Department of Commerce Privacy Green Paper
Chris Wolf passes on details that have emerged about the upcoming Commerce Dept. privacy ‘green paper’. Interesting to note that Commerce is calling for a baseline privacy law supplanted by self-regulation – which sounds close to what the FTC is likely to call for. To read his post, click here: Summary of Draft Department of […]