Krystan Hitchcock
Advertisers Can’t Be Trusted To Self-regulate on Data Collection, Says EFF
The Electronic frontier Foundation’s opinion that the digital advertising industry can regulate itself properly. The Digital Advertising Alliance is an association of online advertisers that was created to establish guidelines to regulate matters of consumer choice e.g. data collection, but their previous programs have been unsuccessful. A study revealed that users found the DAA’s cookie-based opt-out tool difficult to use and to understand and the same goes for their advertising option icon.
The EFF says even if advertisers violate the newer principles, there’s no repercussions and it’s unclear how the guidelines are enforced. The EFF thinks simpler opt-out tools like the Do No Track Feature found in Safari, Internet Explorer and Firefox achiever more user benefits, but proper legislation is still the best route.