Sen. Markey Seeks FTC Guidance on Online Conferencing

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) wants the Federal Trade Commission to issue comprehensive guidelines for online conferencing services as the use of those to bridge physical distancing proliferate during the pandemic. 

"A growing number of incidents over the past several weeks have revealed that these technologies may expose their users to significant cybersecurity and privacy risks," said Markey.  

With Zoom becoming a verb, he said, "individuals are increasingly vulnerable to cyber-attacks and inappropriate access of their personal data,” he wrote FTC chairman Joseph Simmons and the the other commissioners. 

In addition to guidance for companies, Markey also wants the FTC to develop best practices for users of the conference services to help them decide when and how to user them. 

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.