Technology & Innovation — March 29, 2011

‘Do Not Track’ Feasible, Practical

Do Not Track allows us to veto tracking by third parties, who are welcome to respond by offering cash-for-data. It creates a market mechanism for negotiating over privacy preferences.

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Jonathan Mayer responds to criticisms of the proposals: “Do Not Track raises issues of both technology and policy; it is essential to draw a sharp dividing line between the two. The concerns that Commissioner Rosch expresses relate to business impact. There is now widespread consensus that Do Not Track, implemented as an HTTP header, is ‘technically feasible.’ …Do Not Track allows users to veto third-party tracking; third parties are welcome to respond by offering cash-for-data deals. One of the advantages of Do Not Track is that it creates a market mechanism for negotiating over privacy preferences.”

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