Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Menu
Search
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Cybersecurity
    • Cybersecurity

    FTC Shifts To Right

    By
    eWEEK EDITORS
    -
    January 15, 2001
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      The Federal Trade Commission during the past few years has taken the lead among federal agencies in tussling with online privacy issues, but its aggressive stance may stall, or even be reversed, with the change in administrations.

      It is widely believed that President-elect George W. Bush will choose Commissioner Orson Swindle to chair the commission. The Democrats will still have a 3-2 majority on the Commission until current Chairman Robert Pitofskys term expires in September. But Swindle, the most conservative commissioner, will have broad power to decide whether to hold meetings and what the meeting agendas will address, said Mary Gardiner Jones, who was a commissioner between 1964 and 1973 and who has been active in technology issues ever since.

      She said the work at the FTC “almost came to a halt” when President Ronald Reagan installed Jim Miller as FTC chair. In addition, Bush has chosen Wendy Lee Gramm, a longtime inside-the-beltway partisan and wife of Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, to manage the FTC transition. That means she will recruit replacements for many of the upper-level bureaucrats at the agency who are expected to leave when the new administration takes over.

      Gramm has fashioned a career out of her intense distaste for government regulations. Currently, she is director of the Regulatory Studies Program at George Mason Universitys Mercatus Center, a research institution that casts a skeptical eye on the value of government regulation. Given Swindles and Gramms conservatism, Jones predicted the FTC will back away from privacy regulation, promoting instead industry self-regulation.

      Peter Swire, a law professor at Ohio State University who until recently served as the chief privacy adviser to the Clinton administration, agreed. He hailed the FTC as a leader in the creation of privacy policy, and said the new administration “may be less aggressive about developing new codes of conduct as [privacy] problems arise.”

      The expected change in emphasis will also be felt on Capitol Hill, said Ari Schwartz, policy analyst at the Center for Democracy and Technology. “People are going to be looking at legislation with the thought that the FTC will change, and the change will be significant,” he said. “No matter who the chair is, they will look at privacy differently from [current FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky].”

      eWEEK EDITORS
      eWeek editors publish top thought leaders and leading experts in emerging technology across a wide variety of Enterprise B2B sectors. Our focus is providing actionable information for today’s technology decision makers.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Android

      Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro: Durability for Tough...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 5, 2020 0
      Have you ever dropped your phone, winced and felt the pain as it hit the sidewalk? Either the screen splintered like a windshield being...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Why Data Security Will Face Even Harsher...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 1, 2020 0
      Who would know more about details of the hacking process than an actual former career hacker? And who wants to understand all they can...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      How Veritas Is Shining a Light Into...

      eWEEK EDITORS - September 25, 2020 0
      Protecting data has always been one of the most important tasks in all of IT, yet as more companies become data companies at the...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      How NVIDIA A100 Station Brings Data Center...

      Zeus Kerravala - November 18, 2020 0
      There’s little debate that graphics processor unit manufacturer NVIDIA is the de facto standard when it comes to providing silicon to power machine learning...
      Read more
      Apple

      Why iPhone 12 Pro Makes Sense for...

      Wayne Rash - November 26, 2020 0
      If you’ve been watching the Apple commercials for the past three weeks, you already know what the company thinks will happen if you buy...
      Read more

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×