U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, convened a hearing on Wednesday examining consumer data mining and how Americans’ sensitive personal data can be protected in the rapidly growing Internet economy.
Walden’s goal for the hearing was “to help provide all Americans with a better understanding of how their data flows online, how online platforms and online media sources determine what they see or don’t see, and the extent of and methods by which their information is collected and used by online firms,” he said.
The hearing examined how computer algorithms affect both consumers’ safety and their freedom of choice for accessing online content. Hearing witnesses included experts in law and information science.
“Consumers should remain as safe from unfair, deceptive, and malicious practices by online firms and their algorithms on the internet as they do in the real world,” Walden said.
Although the Wednesday hearing focused on algorithms, the Energy and Commerce Committee has been investigating the unprecedented Equifax data breach that occurred earlier this year. Hackers compromised data on more than 145 million Americans, including more than 1.7 million Oregonians, according to Walden’s office.
In addition, reports of the use of social media sites to attempt to influence voting decisions have highlighted the enormous amount of personal data that those sites provide to advertisers and others, and how the data can be used to create profiles of individuals, a background memo from the committee said.
“Americans should be able to feel confident that their well-being, freedom of expression, and access to the content of their choice are not being wholly sacrificed for profit. Americans should have vibrant, competitive markets both offline and online, where consumers know their rights and options, and have the freedom to choose what is best for their circumstances,” Walden said.