With a showdown at the World Wide Web Consortium (WS3) going
on between the ad industry and privacy advocates, the world waits to see if a consensus
can be reached on a Do-Not-Track standard.
Debate continues on whether its default state should be on
or off, or whether it should be a browser setting or a choice at installation
like Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.
Privacy advocates like Jonathan Mayer, a graduate student
from Stanford University and member of the WS3’s tracking protection working
group, dismiss a document distributed by the Digital Advertising Alliance
called “Draft Framework for DNT
Discussions Leading up to Face to Face” as a mere proposal. Mayer believes that there should be a
universal choice built into browsers to which the user can create exceptions;
or a website can request (via pop-up) that a user make an exception to a
particular website.
Ad industry professionals argue the importance of
understanding consumer preferences online to facilitate free marketing of
products consumers show they are interested in based on the data collected.
Privacy advocates rebut this by pointing out the success of
the Do Not Call List implemented several years ago, stating it shows how
consumers feel about their privacy. It
should be noted, however, that even with Do Not Track turned on, information will
still be collected under certain exceptions.
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