Dive Brief:
- A bill to rescind the FCC internet privacy regulations issued in the final months of the Obama administration is awaiting President Donald Trump's signature after it narrowly passed the U.S. House of Representatives Tuesday.
- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) told Campus Technology that a majority of Americans want the privacy provision in place to keep data about their browsing and communication habits from being sold to the highest bidder.
- Republicans in favor of the bill said companies like Google already have access to the information, and not allowing internet service providers the same creates unfair discrepancies.
Dive Insight:
The user experience won't likely change much on the surface for most internet users — especially those who use Facebook and Google, both of which already track users' activity for the purpose of targeting ads. One major change could be the ability to link browsing and app habits across devices, which is already done by Google Chrome, if one signs in from multiple devices.
The main concern is that with websites like Facebook and Google, users can opt out of such tracking, which would not be the case with the internet service providers. Institutions should take care to reinforce privacy best practices with students and staff, including using VPNs, encrypted browsers, and clearing app and browsing history on all devices often.