Wisconsin Officials Vote to Block Trump Web Browsing Privacy Ban

MADISON, WI — Wisconsin public officials are seeking an important block on President Donald Trump's controversial measure, that allows internet service providers like Verizon and AT&T to collect, share and even sell customer's personal data including web browsing history.

Trump's measure, which was signed the President on Monday, would strip away new protections pushed forward by President Barack Obama that would have taken effect in December.

Wisconsin's block

Wisconsin state senators voted 33-0 on Tuesday to pass SB49, an Information Technology and Broadband Expansion bill. An amendment as part of that bill is aimed directly at Trump's measure and seeks to guarantee privacy protections for state internet users.

The amendment's protections are twofold: barring internet providers from accessing customer data without their permission, and preventing ISPs from refusing internet service to customers who seek to maintain their privacy.

The amendment states, "a provider of Internet access services may not collect information about a customer's use of Internet access services that results from the customer's use of those services unless the provider of Internet access services receives express written approval from the customer."

The amendment further reads, "a provider of Internet access services may not refuse to provide Internet access services to a person because the person does not approve the collection of information about the person's use of Internet access services.”

State Sen. Chris Larson, who was one of the 13 state senators to offer the amendment, had this to say Wednesday, "while this amendment was a significant step in the right direction, the issue of privacy concerns is not going away. All of us in the State Legislature were elected to protect our communities and safeguard our neighbors and their personal information. To ensure that promise, I am working on additional legislation to protect our neighbors’ privacy as well as their control over their private information."

Next Steps

Before Wisconsin's Information Technology and Broadband Expansion bill - and the internet protections amendment - can be passed into law, the bill has to clear a hurdle in the Assembly, and then reach Gov. Walker's desk.

It remains to be seen whether these protections - in amendment form - can pass muster in either venues.

Trump's Measure: What does it mean for you?

The new resolution signed by President Trump, ensures the continued ability for internet service providers to track and share customer data, such as browsing history, location data and anything else that can be gleaned from their behavior on the internet. Had the original regulations signed by President Barack Obama been left in place, they would have taken effect in December, and required companies to ask permission to track and use customer data under the FCC regulations, allowing users to opt out if they wanted.

Without these regulations, companies like Verizon, AT&T and Comcast can sell their customers' data to advertisers or any other interested buyers without clearly informing them.

What can customers do to protect themselves?

Virtual private networks — known as VPNs — are one of the most secure ways to protect your web information from monitoring. If you use a VPN, it will mask your web traffic from your internet service provider.

Another option, similar to using a VPN, is to use the web browser Tor. Though it's not perfect, Tor was designed, unlike most other web browsers, specifically for the purpose of preserving your privacy while you use the internet.

Why would Federal Republicans want to repeal these rules?

Well, generally, Republicans distrust the government's efforts to interfere in market transactions, and many of their priorities under the Trump administration have centered on loosening up restrictions for businesses.

Ryan Radia, writing for the conservative Competitive Enterprise Institute, argued that the FCC's rules in particular are unnecessary and that many of the abuses supposedly prevented by the regulations (which, we should remember, never went into effect) are already barred by other laws.

Others worry about the cost to privacy

Many others — including most Democrats but also a few Republicans on Capitol Hill — worry that the existing protections are not enough.

"I’m disappointed that, last week, my Republican colleagues in the Senate voted to gut critical #broadbandprivacy protections for consumers," Sen. Al Franken, a Minnesota Democrat, said on Twitter.

image via shutterstock

cody fenwick contributed to this report