-Caveat Lector-
REPORT: PRIVACY NOT PROTECTED ONLINE
By NANCY ZUCKERBROD
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) . People who log onto dozens of federal government Web
sites may be unknowingly tracked despite a privacy policy forbidding it,
investigators say.
In one case, a government contractor was even given ownership of all the
information collected from a Web site, said the congressional report
released Monday.
The scope of the problem hasn't been nailed down. For example, the
report said NASA hasn't determined how many Web sites it operates so
officials don't know how many might be gathering the information.
The report, culled from audits of 16 agencies, found 64 federal Web
sites used files that allow them to track the browsing and buying habits
of Internet users.
The departments of Education, Treasury, Energy, Interior and
Transportation used such unauthorized files, as did NASA and the General
Services Administration, the report said.
It did not estimate how many people may have visited the sites. But the
company Jupiter Media Metrix, which tracks Internet usage, says
government sites are popular. The company estimates that 3.5 million
Internet users went to NASA's Web site in March, and 2.2 million people
visited the Education Department's site.
Ari Schwartz, senior policy analyst for the Center for Democracy and
Technology, which follows privacy issues, called the report troubling.
``Generally when we think about privacy and the government, we want to
make sure that the government is transparent and does protect privacy
over and above the rest of the Internet and the rest of the private and
nonprofit sector,'' Schwartz said.
His organization was one of several that signed a letter Monday urging
the Bush administration to promptly fill a post created by President
Clinton to see that agencies adhere to privacy policies.
The new report was released by Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., the chairman
of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee. He said he was upset by
the findings and planned to introduce legislation that would establish a
commission to examine government privacy practices.
Congress ordered all agency inspector generals to investigate the use of
unauthorized tracking devices after the General Accounting Office
reported in October that about a dozen agency Web sites were using the
technology even though the Clinton administration issued a memo
restricting the practice in June.
The only time agencies are supposed to be able to use such software is
when there is a compelling need and agency heads say it is OK. In those
instances, the Web sites must explicitly tell Internet users about the
practice.
Contractors operating Web sites on behalf of the government also must
abide by the policy.
The White House referred questions to the Office of Management and
Budget, where spokesman Chris Ullman would say only that the policy
remains in effect and the issue is ``something that we certainly are
keeping an eye on.''
Eleven Energy Department Web sites used the unauthorized files, known as
``cookies,'' prompting Inspector General Gregory Friedman to say the
department ``cannot provide reasonable assurance'' the privacy of Web
site visitors will be protected.
GSA Inspector General William Barton found that a contractor managed the
business operations of an agency site that used the tracking technology.
The agreement gave the contractor ownership of all the information about
the Internet users who visited the site.
Of the agencies surveyed, the Transportation Department was most likely
to use the tracking files, according to the report. It had them on 23
Web pages, but the devices have since been removed, according to John
Meche, the agency's deputy assistant inspector general.
``Protecting Web privacy is an ongoing challenge because Web sites are
constantly revised or reconfigured,'' Meche said in his report.
NASA Inspector General Roberta Gross found three Web sites using
unauthorized files, and she indicated the number could be higher.
Gross said NASA does not inventory its Web sites and is unable to
reliably determine how many it owns or whether they are in compliance
with government policies.
Copyright 2001 NYP Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.
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FROM THE DESK OF:
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~~~~~~~~~~~
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