FTC Wants Do-Not-Track System for Web

The FTC is calling for the creation of a system that allows consumers to opt out of having the web pages they view tracked by advertisers, the Wall Street Journal reports. The commission said "industry must do better" to protect online privacy in its report issued today. The FTC proposes that web browsers be made to include an option to enable untracked browsing for people registered with a federal do-not-track list. The latter would be modeled on the do-not-call list, notes PC World.

Registering with the DNT list would ensure that companies would regularly delete information on consumers' browsing and buying preferences. The FTC's director of consumer protection reminds that it would take an "an act of Congress" to establish such a do-not-track system.
(More FTC stories.)