Internet law professor Mark Grabowski discussed legislation which will impact online privacy. The new law impacts the data Internet Service Providers may collect from customers. While the development is bad news, there's also a lot of misinformation being spread around the press and social media, he told various media outlets.
Grabowski was interviewed on the topic by Voice of America, Los Angeles talk show Phil Hulett and Friends, Long Island Press, tech blogs FairyDetox, TechKnowBits and other sites.
Here is Grabowski's full statement:
"There's lots of misinformation about this -- although it's still not good news. In short, nothing is changing. You didn't have online privacy to begin with, so you're not losing anything. The FCC had recently adopted new privacy rules that were set to go into place, but the new legislation stops that from happening. No, someone can't buy your specific internet history. That's a myth. A VPN won't entirely shield your privacy, either – that's another myth.
"What's going to happen is you're going to see more and more targeted ads when you surf online. So, for example, if your kid's teacher emails you that he's struggling in algebra, you might see ads about tutoring services. If you do a Google search for flights to Paris, expect to see ads from airlines and hotel websites.
"Deregulation of internet service providers has been a disaster for Americans. ISPs haven't delivered the promises they made when they begged Congress to end common carriage regulations in the '90s. Twenty years later, we've gone from being a pioneer in internet service to now lagging behind developing countries in terms of access, cost, speed, privacy protections and more. And this situation will probably continue to get worse. It looks like net neutrality is next on the chopping block."
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