• April 24, 2009

Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.), chairman of the House Communications, Technology and Internet Subcommittee, said Thursday that he intends to prepare legislation regarding online privacy.

"It's my intention for the Subcommittee this year to develop legislation extending to Internet users that assurance that their online experience is more secure," Boucher said during a Congressional hearing about communications networks and privacy.

Boucher specifically took aim at deep packet inspection -- the technology used last year by behavioral ad company NebuAd -- saying it was potentially a privacy threat. "The thought that a network operator could track a user's every move on the Internet, record the details of every search and read every email or attached document is alarming," he said.

This summer, Boucher's subcommittee will hold a joint hearing with the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection to examine online privacy, including behavioral advertising.-Wendy Davis