Please - help me help you protect our data privacy

Written By Tristan Roberts

2024-04-19

Dear friend,

Happy Friday! Today I want to run an experiment.

But first, I want to pass along that Representative Avram Patt of Worcester reminded the House this morning that April 19 marks the anniversary of the start of the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. (View his reading of Yiddish poem Dos Naye Lid.)

Germany was "liquidating" the Jewish Warsaw ghetto. The Nazis rounded up all inhabitants and shipped them to death or concentration camps. Ultimately 49,000 Jews were rounded up and sent off, and 7,000 were murdered.

SS soliders men peer into a doorway past the bodies of Jews killed during the suppression of the uprising at Zamenhofa 42 / Kupiecka 18

Among the dead were 750 ŻOB fighters (Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa or Jewish Fighting Organisation) organized by twenty-three year old Mordecai Anielewicz. As their last dying act, the ŻOB fighters held off a greater number of well-armed German soldiers from April 19 to May 16, 1943.

Kovid zeyer ondenk. Honor to their memory.

***
Today's experiment is to flip the script.

I've been getting a lot of emails from you urging me to vote "Yes" or "No" on a bill.

Today, I'm asking you to write an email to your Senators to ask for their support of the House version of H.121: An act relating to enhancing consumer privacy.

I seldom get so incensed about an issue, but today, I am standing up to Big Tech in support of your rights to your data. And at this moment, your voice would make a difference.

For why, I'm going to quote Rep. Monique Priestley's recent commentary, ‘Every breath you take, every move you make…’:

Of the 20 largest economies in the world, the U.S. is the only country that lacks a comprehensive framework establishing rights and protections for the collection, use and sharing of data.

In a time when everyone owns a computer, carries a smartphone, drives a connected car, and owns a variety of smart devices, every beat of your heart, movement you make and conversation you have are valuable.

Research shows that a majority of American adults incorrectly believe when a company has a privacy policy, it means that company cannot share personal data with other parties without their permission

I assure you, this belief couldn’t be further from the truth.

If you are a Vermonter, there are currently no regulations in place to protect you and your loved ones. A recent study found that the Real-Time Bidding market, where companies exchange user browsing, location, and other data to drive targeted advertising, exposes the average American’s data 747 times per day. If you think you have managed to escape Big Data’s grasp, think again. One firm studied by the FTC reported having 3,000 data segments on nearly every U.S. consumer.

That's right -- the federal government has left Americans completely vulnerable on data privacy.

Why? Big Tech's D.C. lobbyists encourage Congress to do nothing.

That leaves it up to the states. Fifteen other states have transparency and agency over their data, and H.121 would make Vermont the 16th. H.121 is a consensus, tripartisan bill. I'm proud of the many hours devoted to the topic by our citizen Legislature. The House Committee on Commerce & Economic Development passed this bill out on an 11-0 vote, and the House passed it on a unanimous roll call vote of 139-0.

Here's some of what it does:

  • protects our consumer rights: the ability for individuals to access, delete, and correct the information that businesses have about them)

  • gives consumers the right to opt-out of use of personal data for targeted advertising, data sales and significant automated profiling decisions

  • adds opt-in consent requirements around the collection and processing of sensitive personal data, like children’s data, fingerprints, DNA, voice prints, social security number, precise location)

  • asks businesses to disclose how data will be used, to secure personal data, and to conduct risk assessments and limiting sharing of personal information with third parties.

The reason I'm writing you today is that lobbyists are trying now to kill or maim this bill in the Vermont Senate, and I want to do everything I can to stop them.

What business is Orvis in?

If you said "fishing gear" or the like, you would only be partially correct. Catalogue businesses like Orvis and the Vermont General Store make a lot of money not from your hobbies but from your data, and they don't want to have to ask you permission.

That's right -- these Vermont-based business is already complying with similar legislation in 15 other states, but they don't want to comply with these provisions when it comes to Vermonters.

I think that former Gov. Thomas Chittenden would stop snapping his fingers and dancing with happiness if we all come together and advocate for our data privacy!

I think that's plain wrong. If you agree, please express your opinion by writing to the following Senators.

If you live in Windham County, I'd start with your Senators:

I would also encourage you to write the Senate Economic Development Committee members:

I'm not offering cut-and-paste language because in my experience receiving these emails, a couple sentences or short paragraphs in your own words say more.

In your email, I would encourage you to state, in your own words:

  • Why personal data privacy and consent matter to you. If you have an experience with this issue, please mention it.

  • That you support the Senate in passing H.121 in its strongest possible form.

I would encourage you to sign your name with your town of residence, and leave a phone number or email address if you want to ask the Senator to reply.

Why does this matter? To wrap up, I'll turn it back to Rep. Priestley:

As legislators, it is our duty to champion the rights of individuals in the face of unchecked technological expansion and to secure a future where data privacy is not just a privilege, but a fundamental right. As passed out of the House, H.121 is a testament of our commitment to Vermonters that we value their privacy, security, and respect. In order to see these protections over the finish line, we need your help.

Thank you! If you do write anyone, I'd be curious to hear about it.

warm regards,

Rep. Tristan Roberts
Vermont House of Representatives

P.S. For more background on the corporate lobbying here in the State House, check out this coverage in VT Digger. And then write a Senator!

Tristan Roberts http://www.tristanroberts.org
Previous

Protecting our highway workers
Next

The "Art of Humor" isn't trivial