Wireless carriers ultimately are responsible for keeping information about their customers private and should address the matter with internal controls instead of waiting for a government mandate. In light of recent news that online data brokers can obtain and sell subscribers’ personal information, that the government has been eavesdropping on cell-phone calls without warrants, and that some Internet companies are handing over records to government without much of a fight, privacy has become a front-and-center issue. And people are rightly concerned.
A slew of unanswered questions still surround the practice of pretexting and cell-phone records theft. (Pretexting is pretending you are someone else in order to get call records.) While pretexting doesn’t seem to have its own law per se, certainly fraud or other related charges would apply. At a news conference last week, the Federal Trade Commission chairman agreed, saying that while her office could not prosecute wireless carriers, it could file charges against the companies selling the information. Perhaps just the threat of being arrested will be enough to stop the continued sale of personal information.
One online data broker said the only people buying this customer information were “licensed professionals,” i.e., private eyes. But private eyes aren’t cops, so I hope they don’t have “rights” to anyone’s private records.
Several legislators have said they plan to address the issue. However, before everyone runs in with more laws, the problem should be studied from a number of angles. Carriers may welcome laws that would enable the government to prosecute people who are stealing the information; such legislation would eliminate the need for carriers to take it upon themselves to take action. But how will the government fund and enforce the legislation?
As sensitive information increasingly moves from the paper to the digital format, vendors must maintain a suitable level of trust with customers. Wireless carriers should be commended for aiding law enforcement when they need to, and for resisting the pressure when it’s questionable. But rather than wait for the big-picture issue of privacy to be addressed, carriers should implement procedures-like passwords-to ensure each customers feels comfortable calling whoever they want on their mobiles.
