Contending that it doesn’t do enough to protect consumers’ online privacy, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and the Computer and Communications Industry Association are challenging a proposed settlement by Microsoft and the Federal Trade Commission.
The Seattle Times reported that the settlement was proposed on Aug. 8 after the FTC found Microsoft misled consumers by overstating the privacy and security offered by its Passport, Wallet and Kids Passport authentication services.
Microsoft has dropped the Wallet service and is hoping to position Passport as a secure system for using credit cards online.
In the settlement, reported the Times, Microsoft promised to improve its protection of personal information collected by the services and better explain to consumers how it uses information. The company also agreed to be audits for every two years of the 20-year agreement. The settlement will not likely be approved for another month.
Complaints from EPIC originally prompted the case. The group has suggested changes to the agreement, such as Microsoft’s audits be made public and that consumers be given access to their Passport records so they can make corrections and deletions.
The Computer and Communications Industry Association, a trade group also supporting efforts to seek additional sanctions against the company in a long-running antitrust case, is also looking for changes to the agreement, according to the Times.
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