EPIC to Congress: Create a Data Protection Agency

December 3, 2019

In advance of a hearing on "Legislative Proposals to Protect Consumer Data Privacy," EPIC told the Senate Commerce Committee that the U.S. needs a Data Protection Agency. "The FTC's problems are not lack of budget or staff. The FTC has not even filled the current post for a Chief Technologist. The FTC has simply failed to use its resources and authorities to safeguard consumers," EPIC said. EPIC recently obtained documents revealing 3,000 new complaints against Facebook since the Commission proposed the $5 b settlement with Facebook. EPIC's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit had previously found 26,000 complaints pending against the social media giant. "The FTC is simply ignoring thousands of consumer privacy complaints about Facebook's ongoing business practices," EPIC said to the Committee. EPIC's recent report, Grading on a Curve: Privacy Legislation in the 116th Congress, sets out the key elements of a modern privacy law, including federal baseline legislation and the creation of a Data Protection Agency.

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