The digital age requires more than broad Fourth Amendment protections against police intrusion, as discussed in the editorial above. Mind-boggling troves of personal data gleaned from our computer use are now being stored, traded, sold and mined by all manner of computer makers, online businesses and social media.
The wide availability of such information poses a serious threat to the personal privacy of every computer user. A sweeping proposal in Europe for tough, new online privacy measures should prompt American lawmakers to establish a similar law.
The Internet privacy law proposed by the European Commission would mandate protection of the confidentiality of personal information, require notice or consent of individuals when it is collected, mandate timely destruction of personal information by companies that use it for allowed purposes, and provide individuals the right to demand permanent destruction of particular information -- aptly called "the right to be forgotten."
It also would fix meaningful fines and penalties for companies that violate the law, and it would allow individuals to move their personal information, such as that on Facebook, to a competitor Web site.
The European Commission is expected to debate the proposal over the next few months. If adopted, it would govern all 27 countries in the European Union in 2014.
Internet businesses in Europe are predictably complaining that application of the law would raise their operating burdens and costs, and that it could slow the growth of online companies and services. The counter-argument to that, of course, is that privacy concerns already inhibit users. Confidentiality provisions that remedy such concerns would probably spur growth of online services.
Oddly, American lawmakers, if not individual computer users, continue to be blasé about the need for such protections. Online privacy bills litter the legislative graveyard, though none are as tough as EC law. That is bound to change as more Americans realize the extent to which their personal information is mined, traded and exploited without their knowledge or consent. Congress would serve Americans well by moving sooner, rather than later, to assure personal privacy rights.