W3C releases drafts of new standards for online privacy

By eGov Innovation Editors | Nov 23, 2011

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The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an international community that develops open standards to ensure the long-term growth of the Web,  recently published two standards that would make it mandatory for Internet users to specify preferences about online tracking.

The first standard, called the Tracking Preference Expression (DNT), defines mechanisms for users to express cross-site tracking preferences and for websites to indicate whether they honor these preferences.

Meanwhile, the second standard called Tracking Compliance and Scope Specification,  defines the meaning of a "Do Not Track" preference and sets out practices for websites to comply with this preference.

W3C said the documents are the early work of a broad set of stakeholders in the W3C Tracking Protection Working Group, including browser vendors, content providers, advertisers, search engines, and experts in policy, privacy, and consumer protection.

The organization is inviting W3C invites review of these early drafts, which is expected to become standards by mid-2012.