Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), and Mark Warner (D-Va.), have reintroduced a bill that would require more transparency about edge providers' use of secret algorithms to frame user's online experience.

The Filter Bubble Transparency Act, which was introduced back in 2019, requires large internet platforms (over 1 million users and generating more than $50 million in gross revenues, to inform users how their experience is being shaped and allow them to exit that information bubble if they choose.

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Specifically, the bill would require those platforms to:

1. "Clearly notify its users that their platform creates a filter bubble that uses secret algorithms (computer-generated filters) to determine the order or manner in which information is delivered to users; and

2. "Provide its users with the option of a filter bubble-free view of the information they provide. The bill would enable users to transition between a customized, filter bubble-generated version of information and a non-filter bubble version (for example, the “sparkle icon” option that is currently offered by Twitter that allows users to toggle between a personalized timeline and a purely chronological timeline)."

It would be illegal for anyone to operate a covered online platform that uses a "secret algorithm" unless the above two conditions are met. The Federal Trade Commission would enforce the legislation, including giving it the power to seek civil penalties for willful violations.

The bill's 2019 bipartisan incarnation may not have made it into law, but Silicon Valley is under renewed, heavy, and bipartisan criticism for how it treats content and its users.

“Big tech’s manipulative algorithms have exploited consumers and their data for far too long,” said Blumenthal. “By notifying and providing users with options for how they are viewing information, this bill will grant Americans the transparency and privacy they deserve. I’m proud to join a bipartisan coalition in the ongoing fight for stronger data privacy protections.”

“The more transparency consumers have with respect to how social media and other internet platforms prioritize content on their services, the better,” said Thune, ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee Communications Subcommittee (all the bill's sponsors but Warner are members of the committee). “This legislation helps consumers better understand how algorithms are used to select content in their ‘feed’ and gives users more control over what information they are digesting. I’d like to thank Sen. Schatz for adding his support to this bill, which increases the momentum behind this important issue.”

There is bipartisan concern on Capitol Hill that a fertility app may be fertile ground for privacy violations.

Citing an investigation by the International Digital Accountability Council (IDAC) that found mobile app Premom may have compromised its users' privacy, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) have asked the FTC to investigate.

In a letter to FTC chairman Joseph Simons, they said Premom may have used deceptive practices in their "troubling" data collection and sharing. The senators are particularly concerned that the app apparently shares user data without their consent.

The mobile app allows users to track fertility cycles to figure out the best time to try and get pregnant, using personal and private health data. The senators said the app has been downloaded a half-million times and is a top fertility app search in the Apple and Google Play app stores.

Joining in the letter to Simons were Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Mark Warner (D-Va.).

The senators want answers to the following questions:

1. "Does the FTC treat persistent identifiers, such as the non-resettable device hardware identifiers discussed in the IDAC report, as personally identifiable information in relation to its general consumer data security and privacy enforcement authorities under Section 5 of the FTC Act?

2. "Is the FTC currently investigating or does it plan to investigate Premom’s consumer data collection, transmission, and processing conduct described in the IDAC report to determine if the company has engaged in deceptive practices?

3. "Does the FTC plan to take any steps to educate users of the Premom app that the app may still be sharing their personal data without their permission if they have not updated the app? If not, does the FTC plan to require Premom to conduct such outreach?

4. "Please describe any unique or practically uncommon uses of encryption by the involved third-party companies receiving information from Premom that could be functionally interpreted to obfuscate oversight of the involved data transmissions."

5. "How can the FTC use its Section 5 authority [over unfair and deceptive practices] to ensure that mobile apps are not deceiving consumers about their data collection and sharing practices and to preempt future potentially deceptive practices like those Premom may have engaged in?"

On its Web site, Premom parent Easy Healthcare Corp. said it is "committed to safeguarding any information or data that may be collected through our site or mobile application and to ensuring that you are fully informed as to how your information will be used."

It also points out on its Web site that Silicon Review magazine named it one of the top 50 most trustworthy companies of 2020.

A bipartisan quintet of senators has introduced a bill to help close the telecommunications workforce gap.

The senators are John Thune (R-S.D.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). 

The bill is the Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act. 

“This legislation builds off the work I’ve already done to make 5G a reality in South Dakota by getting skilled workers to industries that will deliver 5G services and technology across the country, particularly in rural areas of my state,” said Thune in a statement.  

The bill would help create a next-gen workforce by: 

1. "Establishing a Department of Labor (DOL)-led interagency working group that, in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other federal and non-federal stakeholders, would be tasked with developing recommendations to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry. 

2. "Requiring the DOL, in consultation with the FCC, to issue guidance on how states can address the workforce shortage in the telecommunications industry by identifying all of the federal resources currently available to them that can be used for workforce development efforts. 

3. "Directing the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study to determine the specific number of skilled telecommunications workers that will be required to build and maintain broadband infrastructure in rural areas and the 5G wireless infrastructure needed to support 5G wireless technology." 

“CTIA supports the efforts of Senators Thune, Tester, Moran, Peters, and Wicker to ensure we have the skilled workforce necessary to deploy next-generation networks," said Kelly Cole, senior VP of CTIA, "which will enable the U.S. to secure its global leadership in the emerging 5G economy." 

“NATE Chairman Jimmy Miller recently testified before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on the workforce development challenges currently confronting the industry," said Todd Schlekeway, executive director of the National Association of Tower Erectors. "NATE believes this bipartisan legislation is a strong response to the issues that were highlighted at the hearing and can serve as a springboard to fostering greater collaboration between the federal government and state workforce boards..."

Only a couple of days before his committee's hearing on data privacy, Senate Commerce Committee chair Roger Wicker headed a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai wanting some answers following a story in Business Insider that the company had failed to disclose that there was a microphone it its Nest Secure home security device.

Google said that not to have mentioned the mics in the devices' technical specs was an "error." The senators want to make sure that was all it was, and that there are no similar errors out there yet to be discovered.

Wicker, joined by Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), chairman of the Consumer Protection Subcommittee, and John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Communications Subcommittee, want to know when Google realized the mics had not been disclosed, how it developed those specs, and more.

In the letter, the senators pointed out that there is growing concern about large tech companies "collecting and using personal data about [consumers] without their knowledge."

They said it was important that Google be "completely transparent" and provide "full disclosure," something that could well be part of general privacy legislation that both Democrats and Republicans are suggesting needs to be hammered out on online privacy.

They also pointed out that Google's chief privacy officer testified last September before the Commerce Committee that "transparency is a core value." They told Pichai that given that pledge, the failure to disclose the mic raised "serious questions" about its commitment to that value.

Even if Google was not using the mic, hackers could have activated it to record illicitly, they said, though not pointing out the irony of using a "secure" device to do so.

The senators want a half dozen questions answered by March 12 (by 5 p.m.), including whether Nests have always had mics, when and how it became aware it had failed to list it in the spec, if Google is aware of any third party having used the device for any unauthorized purpose and whether there are any other "similar omissions" in the tech specs for other Google products.

A trio of Republicans wants some answers from Marriott on the breach of half a billion guest records going back over four years.

That came in a letter to Marriott president Arne Sorenson from Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee; Roger Wicker, chairman of the Communications Subcommittee, and Jerry Moran, chairman of the Consumer Protection Subcommittee.

Marriott has apologized and has set up a Web site and call center to answer questions, emailed those impacted, and will provide a free online security monitoring service.

But the legislators still have a lot of questions about the breach they want answered. Those include when it discovered the breach, which dated back to 2014, how many credit card numbers were exposed (Marriott says they were encrypted, but isn't sure that the hackers didn't get the keys to unlock them), and a timeline of events, including relevant notifications or investigations.

They want those answers no later than 5 p.m. on Dec. 17.