Welcome to another weekend bonus episode of the Tech Mem Ride Home. I'm Brian McCullough.

When issues of consumer data and consumer privacy come up on the show I think I've asked out loud a couple

of times before what are the laws here in the United States who owns my data what

are the rules what mechanisms are even in place to give me any sort

of semblance of control over my data. Are there any at all?

Well, Justin Brookman is the Director of Consumer Privacy and Technology Policy at Consumer Reports.

He was also previously at the Federal Trade Commission.

As you'll hear, he confirms to me that there are essentially no nationwide rules or laws in place around a lot of this stuff.

Whatever rules are in place are sort of tangential statutes that have been drafted into service in an attempt to address modern issues that the statutes

weren't even designed for.

So is a big federal data and privacy regulatory regime coming soon? What might that look like?

And by the way, the states aren't waiting.

They're already beginning to pass consumer data and privacy laws,

but do they even have the right to do that?

Oh, and is the FTC about to bring the hammer down on Facebook?

spoiler alert Justin thinks most definitely because the FTC knows it needs to make a statement.

Anyway, think of this as another episode where I educate myself on corners of the tech world

that I don't know super much about, and hopefully I educate you along with me.

What is, I feel like I've read conflicting things about this.

What is the current like framework for things like privacy

and regulations around our data? Like is there even a legal or regulatory

framework in terms of the control I have over my own data?

...