The New York Times reports on the gray legal area surrounding mobile apps. The law has not kept pace with advances in technology, resulting in online businesses’ collection of large volumes of personal data. Meanwhile, users are often oblivious. “Generally, most people are simply unaware of what is going on,” said one expert. App developers’ data collection practices are loosely regulated in the U.S., the report states. California Attorney General Kamala Harris recently reached an agreement with six leading companies that they would only sell or distribute apps with privacy policies, the report states. Meanwhile, in Europe, revisions to the data protection regulation would require consumer consent before data collection on the web. (Registration may be required to access this story.)
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