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Accessing the pages on ambest.com constitutes the user?s
agreement to our terms
of use; Information collected via this Web site is protected by
our privacy statement;
Comments or concerns should be directed to our customer
service group; For other matters refer to our contact us
page.
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Tuesday, November 17th
For example, the European Union has a new privacy protection policy that extends to foreign companies doing business there. The policy requires that web sites have a clearly posted privacy policy that informs visitors that giving personal information is optional. The web site must also explain how the information will be used, a complaint procedure and a plan to resolve complaints, Susan Nycum said Tuesday during a seminar at the A.M. Best Co. annual Insurance Information Management Conference in Boston. "Privacy is not something we can decide for ourselves anymore when we have enough," said Nycum, who is an international partner with the California-based law firm of Baker & McKenzie specializing in high technology law. Insurers that engage in electronic commerce also need to be concerned about jurisdictional issues. "If you sell something on the web make sure it is signed in your jurisdiction," Nycum said. Proper wording of the sales agreement can solve this concern. "Have them make the offer to you, the provider," Nycum said. Also, to make sure purchasers are acquainted with all the terms and conditions of the sales offer, they should be required to call up the user agreement, scroll through it and click at the end, she suggested. Insurers also face the possibility of trade secrets leaking out into cyberspace through employee use of the Internet, said Frederick S. Lane III, a Vermont-based attorney and computer consultant for the legal profession. An examination of the e-mail messages sent by employees over the course of two or three months often can give you a clear picture of what the company is working on, Lane said. To limit that exposure, companies should educate employees on how easy it is to inadvertently let proprietary information slip out. And, the company should have a policy on the acceptable use of the Internet by employees. Some sample policies are available through a search for "acceptable use policies" via the Yahoo and Alta Vista search engines, he said. Companies also face a threat to their reputation from attack sites--web sites established by disgruntled customers or employees that spread rumors and misinformation about a company. A proactive way to head off such attack sites, Lane said, is to register potentially derogatory names themselves to keep them away from detractors. |
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How to maintain corporate and customer privacy on the Internet is
a growing concern as federal and international regulators pursue new
requirements for web-site owners.