Should states allow private companies to use information about citizens’ behavior on the Internet for commercial purposes?
As in all transactions, all parties involved should be aware of their rights and obligations as well as the ways in which the information is gathered and processed. In any case, private companies should specifically request the possibility to retain the personal data of their customers and should not be allowed to buy or sell it to other companies. Moreover, the TRP believes that the use of proprietary softwares may pose a problem in cases when alleged mismanagements occur and inquiries are needed. There should also be a clear separation between commercial and governmental uses of the information gathered. Or may States even oblige companies to keep these data for a certain period of time? The issue of data retention is a very critical one and poses serious problems vis-à-vis individual privacy as well as those aspects that concern the ways in which private information is elaborated and shared with other public and/or private entities. It needs to be noted for instance, that existing E
