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S 1578 116th Congress Senate Commerce Administrative law and regulatory procedures Civil actions and liability Consumer affairs Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Internet and video services Internet, web applications, social media Marketing and advertising Right of privacy State and local government operations

Do Not Track Act

Introduced: May 21, 2019 Introduced by: Hawley, Josh Republican · Missouri See on congress.gov
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 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 21, 2019
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
May 21, 2019
Introduced in Senate
 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Do Not Track Act

This bill requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to implement and enforce a do not track (DNT) system to protect consumers from unwanted online data harvesting and targeted advertising.

Specifically, the bill requires the FTC to designate a DNT signal (sent by a connected device) and make publicly available a program that (1) is available for download to any common connected device; and (2) sends the DNT signal to every website, online service, or online application to which a user does not want their data sent each time the device connects to it.

The bill further requires an operator of a website, service, or application to search for the DNT signal each time a device connects to it and, if it receives such signal, makes it unlawful for the operator to collect data (other than what is necessary for operation) from a user, use any data collected for targeted advertising, or share any data with a third party without consent. An operator shall not discriminate against a user based on DNT preference. If an operator collects more data than is necessary for operation and does not detect the signal, it must provide a user with notice of the user's rights under the DNT program.

Additionally, the bill prohibits a third-party operator of a program that receives the DNT signal through the connected device of a user of a covered website, service, or application from collecting user data other than data collected to analyze how or whether the user engaged with the program.

What's happening now May 21, 2019

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
 Cosponsors 1
All 1 Democratic 1