Companies try to avert privacy problems with wireless services

WASHINGTON (AP) _ It's bad enough when you don't want an advertising company to know what kind of golf clubs you like, but how will you feel when companies know you're standing in your backyard,

Wednesday, December 13th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) _ It's bad enough when you don't want an advertising company to know what kind of golf clubs you like, but how will you feel when companies know you're standing in your backyard, kitchen or bathroom?

With laptops and handheld devices cutting the wires that tether computer users to desks, soon the Internet will get its cable snipped.

The advantages _ which will include services like weather alerts, ways around traffic and airline delays, plus special coupon offers if you're standing next to a McDonald's _ are tantalizing. But they're bringing along the same security and privacy worries that still hamper the ``old'' Internet.

Leaders of the wireless industry met with federal regulators Tuesday to discuss these impending problems. The meeting at the Federal Trade Commission aimed to assuage user worries hampering e-commerce growth.

Both regulators and business leaders are hoping this attempt at incorporating privacy will be less messy than last time, when embarrassing incidents sparked angry rhetoric from Congress and lawsuits from consumers.

``I think we all recognize that this is a rapidly changing area,'' said FTC Commissioner Mozelle Thompson. ``Accordingly, our responses should be creative, flexible and organic _ built with an ability to embrace change.''

Senior FTC staffers moderated the panels during the two-day conference.

To comply with a Federal Communications Commission mandate, wireless device manufacturers will begin selling handsets next year that can transmit the caller's precise location information, accurate to within several feet. This is part of the FCC's ``Enhanced 911'' plan, set up so emergency crews can locate cell phone callers.

To help offset the cost of sending that data, companies plan to sell advertising and extra services tailored to a caller's location.

Just as advertising companies gather information about a person's past Web use and shopping habits, soon mobile carriers will be able to ascertain where people are standing and be able to add that to their profiles for advertising purposes.

``It's not just the location-based data, but the accumulation of a person's details, too,'' said John Pollard, an executive at Expedia.com, Microsoft's travel site. ``The whole wireless experience brings all kinds of privacy issues _ surveillance, spam, profiling _ all under one issue.''

Possible solutions discussed include suppressing personal information about the targeted consumer; getting a customer's consent before using information; or generalizing information so that an advertiser does not know a target's precise location. Several companies represented at the conference just need to know what part of a city a consumer is in to provide personalized information, rather than knowing a street address or intersection.

But the panel discussions were full of possible horror stories about how a person or company could abuse location data. Divorce lawyers could track a car's location to see if a spouse was cheating, or global positioning data could be stolen by a stalker.

With the added experience from the Internet's continuing troubles with privacy and security, companies now know not to underestimate a malevolent techie or rogue company.

``I think we all have to acknowledge that all those worst-case scenarios are possible,'' said Reuven Carlyle, a vice president at Xypoint Corp. ``It's not a technological issue anymore. Now it's a policy and regulatory issue.''