During Tuesday’s State of the Union Address, President Obama briefly touched on some proposals that may have an impact on the digital advertising industry. These include laws to combat cyber attacks and to protect the data of minors.
Here’s the full speech in case you didn’t watch it:
From the prepared remarks:
We are making sure our government integrates intelligence to combat cyber threats, just as we have done to combat terrorism. And tonight, I urge this Congress to finally pass the legislation we need to better meet the evolving threat of cyber-attacks, combat identity theft, and protect our children’s information. If we don’t act, we’ll leave our nation and our economy vulnerable. If we do, we can continue to protect the technologies that have unleashed untold opportunities for people around the globe.
The follows Obama’s proposal last week to require companies to notify customers of breaches within 30 days as a “single, strong national standard”. This is part of what’s known as the Personal Data Notification and Protection Act. The President says this will not only let consumers know when their info is stolen, but also make it easier for companies to deal with hacks.
The Interactive Advertising Bureau has some thoughts about the President’s proposals, and sent us a statement from Mike Zaneis, EVP, Public Policy & General Counsel.
“Among these ideas, were some extremely positive legislative vehicles that IAB wholeheartedly endorses,” he said. “The mission of securing the internet through stronger cybersecurity laws is vitally important. This is why the IAB created an Anti-Malware Working Group and formed an information partnership with the FBI in September of 2014. We also laud the President’s call for a single, national data breach notification standard. Having a patchwork of 46 disparate state laws does not adequately protect consumers’ identities. The President rightly called for new free trade agreements that would allow the internet to flourish. We also applaud the President in his effort to craft a new Federal law to secure students’ data when they are using innovative digital tools.”
“The President laid out many areas where there can be bipartisan cooperation to enact new consumer protections that also allow industry to continue to innovate and create new jobs. These are ideals shared by the IAB, so much so that the digital marketing industry has taken a lead role in ensuring that consumers have the ability to control their privacy online, creating the first ever comprehensive digital self regulatory program called the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA). The DAA was developed in coordination with the FTC and endorsed by this Administration in 2012.”
“We want to build upon these successes, but some of the President’s proposals could derail our collective efforts,” he added. “A push for controversial, European-style privacy restrictions, such as enactment of a ‘Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights,’ would make the U.S. less competitive in the global economy. This nebulous concept is ill-advised and could undermine the opportunities to deliver real results to the American public. ”
“We look forward to working with the Administration and the 114th Congress on their pro-growth agenda and to having the $50 billion U.S. digital advertising industry continue to lead our economy in the right direction.”
Not all of this was explicitly discussed in the State of the Union Address, but here’s the President’s speech about protecting consumers and families in the digital age from January 12:
And his speech on Cybersecurity the following day:
The White House Blog runs down the key takeaways from the privacy speech here.
Images via YouTube, IAB