“Spyware is a serious infringement upon basic levels of privacy and security,” Pryor said.
Pryor said that spyware presents significant economic, privacy and security concerns for consumers and business alike, as it is used to collect data on a consumer’s browsing habits, enable pop-up ads and alter home pages, among other unauthorized actions.
“There are very few, if any, legitimate reasons for this practice to continue, but countless reasons for it to be stopped, including identity theft and sluggish computer performance,” Pryor said.
The text of Pryor’s bill is not yet available through the Library of Congress website, but Pryor said the Counter Spy Act will “prohibit the covert embedding of spyware on a user’s computer without first obtaining their consent.”
Pryor added that under the bill, the Federal Trade Commission would have authority to bring civil action against violators, and that some violations could carry prison sentences of up to five years.
“My bill protects consumers’ right to privacy and their confidence in using the Internet,” Pryor said. “The industry has failed in self-regulating. It’s time to step in and enact serious consequences against those who use this invasive and deceptive practice.”
The U.S. House of Representatives recently approved a bill with provisions similar to those described by Pryor. H.R. 964, or the “Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act” was passed by the House last week.
The House version of the Spy Act was opposed by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) and a variety of advertising and Internet firms, who asserted that the legislation was worded too broadly, and would cover far more than just spyware.
Stephanie Hendricks, director of public affairs for the DMA told XBIZ that the broad language of the Spy Act was so vague it could be interpreted to cover “benign use of cookies,” like online shopping cart mechanisms and “favorites” lists.
