Better Business Bureau Online has formally launched its online privacy seal program and it says more than 300 companies have already applied to display the BBBOnline seal on their web sites, indicating that they maintain an adequate level of protection for the personal information submitted to them by users. Displaying the seal could cost firms anything between $150 and upwards of $3,000 per year, based on revenues. Dell Computer Corp was among the first companies to display the seal yesterday.
BBBOnline is part of the high-tech industry’s effort to self- regulate to stave off the threat of US government legislation to bring it in line with stricter European legislation governing the transfer of personal data between the two continents, which was announced last October. The US and EU authorities have been negotiating a possible compromise for months but nothing has been agreed upon yet. BBBOnline comes to the party later than Truste, which had about a two-year lead on BBBOnline.
BBBOnline finished testing its seal program in December and companies can now apply for a seal via its application form in the BBB web site. It is thought to be the only privacy program with any real teeth attached to it, as BBBOnline will refer some of the more serious cases to the Federal Trade Commission for investigation. Companies displaying the seal have to assign somebody to oversee the privacy policy and BBB staff will regularly survey the sites to ensure compatibility with the stated policy. Companies that fail to maintain standards will have their seals removed. Ultimately that is about as far as any privacy program can go without legislation – unless some philanthropic group wants to pay accountants to do the costly auditing process. BBBOnline is part of the 86 year-old Better Business Bureau. http://www.bbbonline.org
