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Phorm ruled as legal
Wednesday 17th September 2008, by Daniel King
The Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (BERR) has found Phorm's internet marketing technology to be legal.
Some concerns were raised by consumers over the targeted advertising campaigns which based were based on data collated by internet service providers on browsing habits, reports ISP Review.
In a statement to the Register, BERR stated that the Phorm's products could still be used lawfully, setting out a number of provisos for it to do so.
It said that user profiling must only be done with the knowledge of the consumer and their agreement. It also said that "sensitive" search terms must be left out and be drawn widely so as not to identify the individual user.
A clear statement to the consumer is now required in which they are asked whether or not they wish to be involved.
The European Commission wrote to the UK government earlier this year asking questions about Phorm and stating that EU intervention was a possibility.
Categories: Broadband, Internet Security
