back to article What a Flake: Congress mulls trashing privacy rules, letting ISPs go to town on your data

US Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) has suggested tweaking the law to permanently prevent America's comms watchdog, the FCC, from limiting what ISPs are allowed to do with your web browser histories and other private information. Using what was – at least until the past month – an arcane piece of legislation called the Congressional …

  1. Mark 85
    Thumb Down

    I see they're shoveling the bovine excrement by the truckload these days as this isn't about the consumer/customer/user as they say. I have to hand it to the ISP's...they're getting good value from the their bought and paid for legislators and regulators to help their bottom line. Government for the people... indeed. Hah!

    1. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

      Government for the people... indeed. Hah!

      Corporations are people too. Big, rich, generous[1] people..

      [1] To the right politicians anyway. And anyone else that they think they can buy. Like FCC heads..

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        As an outsider, I have to say it's staggering to witness the brazen obeisance of your supposed representatives in Congress towards Corporate interests. Just how broken is democracy for them to feel secure behaving in a way that disadvantages the electors so badly and so obviously?

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          How broken? Our president literally lives in his own tower, towering over the people. Until politicians are flat out murdered, it's same 'ol same 'ol here in the United States of Business.

          1. thomn8r

            Until politicians are flat out murdered, it's same 'ol same 'ol here in the United States of Business.

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exnaY0l4XsM

  2. Palpy

    What you say!? Disapproval! Sad! Is best expression --

    -- of Trumpism philosophy: Destroy regulatory protections for make benefit glorious billionaires! Soon all loser wage-slaves to eat dirt and grovel before winner-class wealthy 0.5%!

  3. Lars Silver badge

    Where are you pushed

    Dear Americans, towards the United Soviet of America.

  4. frank ly

    Translation

    "... consistent and uniform protection of the privacy of their personal information ..."

    = a big fat zero everywhere

  5. Kevin McMurtrie Silver badge
    Big Brother

    Hello ISPs

    I'd like to purchase marketing data on DNS lookups and web traffic from US elected officials. It's worth a lot to me. Name your price. "Anonymize" the source if you wish.

  6. Syntax Error

    He's in bed with the advertising industry. Another class A muppet.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I wonder if these guys, both at the FCC and members of Congress, have ever considered getting feedback from the public. You know... the ones they are supposed to be representing and protecting?

    The historical ave. approval rating for Congress is 30%.

    So, I'm guessing NO.

    ----

    I'm apposed to letting ISPs collect anything beyond bandwidth usage. Trusting Cable companies to use the data responsibly? What are they smoking? That's like letting a boa constrictor babysit a toddler. I just won't end well...

    1. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

      That's like letting a boa constrictor babysit a toddler. I just won't end well...

      It will (temporarily) for the boa constrictor.

  8. Insane Reindeer

    #Confused

    Who votes for this guy?! I mean why? No, I mean why aren't they camped outside his office protesting this insanity? Do they not care? I really don't get this.

    1. Swarthy

      Re: #Confused

      Because the way the US is set up, only people in AZ have any say on this clown's election. And if he's doing all right by them (or is seen to be all right by them) the he'll stay, to screw over the rest of the country.

      It is interesting to note that Congress has an ~30% approval rating, but each Senator/Congresscritter usually has about a 70-80% approval rating in their district. the apperant mindset is "Congress is a bunch of self-serving crooks! Our Guy(Gal) is the only one figting back the tide!" - And this is held almost everywhere.

      1. J. Cook Silver badge
        Big Brother

        Re: #Confused

        I can say that he's not, but he's popular enough with the small group of voters who come out en masse to re-elect him every time, if only because no one else will take the time to actually vote.

        (that, and there's been a good amount of 'legal but not ethical' election tampering here too by mucking around with the polling places and other shenanigans.)

  9. Christoph

    Hello, we've been looking at your browsing history that we bought from your ISP. Nice little collection of porn sites you've got there, be a shame if anyone found out about it.

    Hello, we see you browsed to the Planned Parenthood web site. The protesters are on their way to your house BABY MURDERER.

    Searching for foreign holidays? Why don't you Buy American, traitor!

    And lots, lots more.

  10. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    Flake

    Nominative determinism, a force to be reckoned with.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    These rules you speak of

    The FCC has ISP customer privacy rules? That's news to me. Totally unenforced, I presume.

    Also, tell me about the rules that protect me from government surveillance...

    Frankly, these anti-privacy laws are refreshing. Truth in advertising.

    1. Swarthy

      Re: These rules you speak of

      Well, they were going to....

  12. Tikimon
    FAIL

    A standard is reached!

    "Passage of this resolution would return us to an environment in which broadband consumers receive consistent and uniform ABSENCE OF protection of the privacy of their personal information from all entities in the Internet ecosystem WHO WISH TO PROFIT FROM IT."

    FTFY...

  13. anonymous boring coward Silver badge

    Some more scumbaggery from the orange troll admin.

  14. Staced

    Did trump already sign off on this? good thing I use TOR, TAILS, purevpn and duckduckgo. So i think I will be safe. I wonder what right they will take away next?

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like