The EU Takes Privacy Up A Notch

Writing by Nick Stamoulis Tweet

The European Union is going to make all search engines – Google, Yahoo!, and MSN comply with strict privacy rules.

EU rules that someone must consent to their data being collected and give individuals the right to object or verify their information apply to search engines, the regulators’ group said in a short statement as they prepare a full report due by April.

This could potentially open up a whole new level of discussions regarding privacy. It could also lead to some competition regarding citizenship. In this post-industrial age when flight fancy is easy to come by and migration between countries is as easy as ever, citizens of one country could migrate to another country based on laws that are more favorable to individual sensitivities like privacy. If that happens, what will become of the U.S. population?

Don’t count it as a mass exodus yet. It is not likely that huge portions of the population will just up and leave overnight. But it is possible that large numbers of Net citizens who have no particular roots or anything tying them down will want to stick around if policies regarding privacy are more favorable elsewhere. Granted, not everyone is interested in privacy, but many people are and if they can find it in the EU, well, then you could see them hop a plane and head to Spain.