Mobile App Privacy: Develping Standard and Effective Privacy Tools for Consumers

Everyone knows what “apps” are (or they will know soon). Apps fill our smartphones, tablets, and computers; apps will fill our cars and control our homes. Apps of all varieties have been downloaded billions of times by sophisticated technologists and grandparents alike. These apps are collecting and sharing data in previously unimaginable ways. Developing standard and effective privacy tools for apps is essential to protect consumers and to encourage the growth of a transparent and trusted app industry. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Federal Trade Commission, and Congress have all proposed guidelines and rules, but have fallen short of creating standard and effective privacy tools. This Recent Development will examine privacy tools and mobile app privacy regulatory efforts, and recommend changes that are needed to protect consumer data privacy.