The companies that provide you with internet service may soon be able to sell your web browser and app history to advertisers without your consent.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted Tuesday to repeal rules preventing internet-service providers from doing so. The Senate already voted in favor of the repeal.
Now the legislation is being sent to President Donald Trump, who is a strong supporter of the move, according to Reuters.
If the president signs the repeal, companies such as Comcast, AT&T and Verizon can sell the personal browsing habits of their customers to advertisers, who can then use that trove of data to create ads targeted to that user.
This is similar to what Facebook already does, but it would be on a larger scale and wouldn't require someone to give IPSs permission to use their information, according to The Guardian.
Cox Media Group, which owns the site this story is displayed on, generally does not disclose that information. "We will not disclose personally-identifying information collected through our website to third parties except as provided in this privacy policy," according to CMG's website.
While the House and Senate are supporters of the move, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said the American people are not.
“Overwhelmingly, the American people do not agree with Republicans that this information should be sold, and it certainly should not be sold without your permission," said Pelosi, D-Calif. "Our broadband providers know deeply personal information about us and our families."
So if the privacy laws are repealed, what can you do to protect their browsing history?
Unfortunately, not much unless the person is tech-savvy. The Guardian suggests encrypting internet traffic. This can be done through a VPN service, which requires a subscription cost, or using Tor, a software program that enables anonymous communication.
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