Cloudware Security - Guide to Cloud Computing for Business and Technology Managers - page 396

19.1.3 Privacy
The advent of the Internet has transformed the familiar issues of security
and privacy beyond recognition. This is primarily because of the following:
• Every computer can be accessed and influenced by any other com-
puter anywhere on the Internet; this effectively eliminates the con-
cept of locality.
• Businesses that are supported on such an extended and open
IT-substrate are vulnerable to scrutiny and monitoring by interested
parties.
• Browsing and visitations of websites to gather information in
turn also exposes the visitor's behavior itself to interpretation and
analyses.
Consumer privacy issues and concerns have a drastic effect on the enter-
prise's ability to market to, connect to, and create an ongoing relationship
with your customers. Consumers are gravely concerned regarding the abuse
of their privacy, but gathering a certain amount of information is necessary
for companies to personalize and to serve their customers better. Thus, there
is a need for a balance between protecting a consumer's privacy and the need
for enterprises to target and personalize their offerings to the customers. In
2000, US Federal Trade Commission recommended fair information prac-
tices of notice, choice, access , and security . Enterprises need to adhere to these
practices when creating and implementing their privacy policies.
Consumer-oriented commercial websites that collect personal identifying
information from or about consumers online would be required to comply
with the four widely accepted fair information practices:
1. Notice : Websites would be required to provide consumers clear and
conspicuous notice of their information practices, including what
information they collect; how they collect it (e.g., directly or through
nonobvious means such as cookies); how they use it; how they pro-
vide Choice, Access, and Security to consumers; whether they dis-
close the information collected to other entities; and whether other
entities are collecting information through the site.
2. Choice : Websites would be required to offer consumers choices as to
how their personal identifying information is used beyond the rea-
son for which the information was provided (e.g., to consummate a
transaction). Such choice would encompass both internal secondary
uses (such as marketing back to consumers) and external secondary
uses (such as disclosing data to other entities).
3. Access : Websites would be required to offer consumers reason-
able access to the information a Website has collected about them,