Safe Internet Alliance

Safe Internet Alliance Files Comments in FCC’s Open Internet Proceedings

An Open Internet Must Be a Safe Internet

WASHINGTON – Safe Internet Alliance released the following statement today from president Linda Criddle regarding the Federal Communication Commission’s announcement of a “Third Way” Broadband Framework:

“In reviewing the FCC’s announcement of its intention to interpret the transmission component of broadband services as regulated by the agency under Title II of the Communications Act of 1996, I am encouraged that the Chairman explicitly expressed his intention to avoid "regulatory overreach" in implementing the National Broadband Plan.

In seeking to harness rather than stifle innovation in online services, the FCC must maintain focus on one of the core elements of both its mandate and the plan itself: safety and the protection of personal privacy.  As the Chairman's "Third Way" statement spelled out, a central Plan goal is "empowering consumers to take control of their personal information so that they can use broadband communications without unknowingly sacrificing their privacy."

The FCC seeks its new authority at a time when threats to consumers are escalating, trust is deteriorating, and both crime and commercial abuses of users' information are measurably impeding the FCC's stated goal of extending full access and productive use of the Internet to all Americans. The recent furor over the murder of a father in front of his children while he was seeking to complete a transaction initiated over the Internet underscores the rising level of distrust.

The FCC’s own survey highlighted that 45% of the people who are not online cite safety concerns as a reason. Equally concerning is that over half of those who are online cite some form of theft, fraud or Internet crime as a concern, and a quarter of users feel the internet is too dangerous for children.

Perhaps even more sobering is the high level of concern among experts..  Earlier this week, an EastWest Institute poll of cybersecurity experts from 40 nations found that about 90% of those in the forefront of crime prevention feel the threat to individual users is significant. Their concerns are so high that many will not use whole types of online services - 32% of industry security experts are uncomfortable purchasing online, 61% are uncomfortable using social media, and 43% aren't comfortable banking online. 

The Internet is the economic engine of the present as well as the future. Our country needs a comprehensive approach to remove all the barriers to adoption, to be competitive with other countries and provide our citizens with the means to prosperity. Providing a safe and secure online environment for consumers, industry and government must be a core tenet, or we risk that engine stalling.”

Based in Arlington, Va., the Safe Internet Alliance is a nonprofit, 501(c)(4) corporation. Contributions are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes and are not deductible as business expenses. For more information, please visit us at www.safeinternet.org.

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