Digital safety is at the top of Americans’ minds as our tools, communications and businesses continue to go online. Americans have consistently noted in public opinion polling that the biggest tech policy priority for lawmakers should be ensuring U.S. data privacy and security.
Cyberattacks are on the rise in the U.S., and the need is growing as more people integrate generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools into their lives and business practices. This is especially true for families, as parents and guardians are looking to their representatives for real solutions to help them protect their children on digital services.
In NetChoice’s SHIELD campaign, we’ve made it one of our top 6 priorities to help lawmakers find solutions to improve the digital experience: “S” stands for “SECURE.” As such, NetChoice calls on Congress to pass a national privacy standard.
This national privacy standard should establish a unified set of privacy protections for all Americans. While some individual states have taken action, the mismatched patchwork of complex rules have created challenges, especially for small businesses with limited resources trying to compete against larger companies. The online experience should be considered “interstate,” meaning it flows across borders. Americans should feel confident that their data is being protected, no matter which state they live in or decide to visit.
For these reasons, it is critical that Congress take action to keep the data of all Americans and our families safe and implement a national privacy standard.
When crafting this law, policymakers should work to get it right. There are a couple key provisions that must be included in a U.S. standard.
First, these rules should make clear how the U.S. government is permitted and restricted in its use of American data. This will help protect our constitutional rights online.
A national privacy standard should additionally ensure that Americans are protected online without an overbearing regulatory regime that disadvantages emerging innovators and eliminates the beneficial applications of data that many consumers enjoy today, both on and offline. The same, tried and true economic rules about regulatory capture apply to businesses operating digitally.
A comprehensive, national privacy standard of this model is widely supported by many industry groups and research organizations, including NetChoice.
This week, the U.S. House of Representatives is taking up a new bill, Protecting Americans’ Data from Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024. While the bill is an important first step to secure American data from foreign adversaries, it is not enough to protect it. Congress still needs to work on a national privacy standard.
Americans want to see industry and policymakers come together on meaningful solutions to keep them and their families safe online.