Bellows disappointed in Senate failure to protect privacy

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, the Maine Senate again rejected a bill from Sen. Shenna Bellows, D-Manchester, to protect the personal information of Maine internet users. The reconsideration vote was 17-18.

LD 1610, “An Act To Protect Privacy of Online Customer Personal Information” sought to prohibit any internet provider that receives public funding from sharing or selling users’ personal information without consent. The bill also sought to prevent providers from penalizing customers for withholding consent through service refusal and added fees.

“Corporate profits won out over personal privacy today. With the failure of LD 1610, the internet data of every Mainer is at risk of harvesting and sale to the highest bidder by internet service providers,” said Sen. Bellows. “Internet provider should not be able to share or sell our personal information without explicit consent.”

Sen. Bellows introduced the bill last March after Congress overturned a Federal Communications Commission rule banning providers from selling their customers’ online web browsing data to advertisers and other third parties. While the bill failed initial passage in the Senate last week, it received approval in the House with a vote of 82-63.

“I believe all Mainers have a fundamental right to protect their privacy online. I will keep working on legislation that puts Maine consumers first,” said Sen. Bellows.

The failure of the Senate to pass this bill comes as Congress begins to investigate Facebook following the Cambridge Analytica controversy earlier this month. It was exposed that the research firm harvested data from an estimated 87 million Facebook users without their express consent.

###