The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) made waves Tuesday with a new report suggesting that data brokers need to make their actions more transparent to the public.

One solution offered by the FTC? A personal website for each consumer where they can view how their surfing habits are being monetized and even opt to exit the entire playing field. One example of a data broker is someone who collects consumer data (for example -- Internet habits, shopping tendencies, and more) and sells it as a marketing tool to firms

"With respect to data brokers that sell marketing products, the Commission recommends that Congress consider legislation requiring data brokers to provide consumers access to their data, including sensitive data held about them, at a reasonable level of detail, and the ability to opt out of having it shared for marketing purposes," reads the FTC report titled "Data Brokers: A Call for Transparency and Accountability."

The report is not any kind of legislation, but rather a study based on nine data brokers and a series of recommendations for Congress to consider. The FTC Commission asks Congress to consider the following four points when addressing the situation:

1) "First, Congress should seek to enable consumers to easily identify which data brokers may have data about them and where they should go to access such information and exercise opt-out rights. Legislation could require the creation of a centralized mechanism, such as an Internet portal, where data brokers can identify themselves, describe their information collection and use practices, and provide links to access tools and opt outs."

2) "Second, Congress should consider requiring data brokers to clearly disclose to consumers (e.g., on their websites) that they not only use the raw data that they obtain from their sources, such as a person's name, address, age, and income range, but that they also derive from the data certain data elements. Allowing consumers to access data about themselves is particularly important in the case of sensitive information-and inferences about sensitive consumer preferences and characteristics-such as those relating to certain health information."

3) "Third, Congress should consider requiring data brokers to disclose the names and/or categories of their sources of data, so that consumers are better able to determine if, for example, they need to correct their data with an original public record source."

4) "Finally, Congress should consider requiring consumer-facing entities to provide a prominent notice to consumers that they share consumer data with data brokers and provide consumers with choices about the use of their data, such as the ability to opt-out of sharing their information with data brokers"

What do you think? Would you like a personalized web portal to view and make decisions about the information about you floating around? Let us know in the comments section below.

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