
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, October 24, 1995                   TAG: 9510240071
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

REPORT URGES GUARDS ON ELECTRONIC PRIVACY

Safeguards are needed to prevent the information superhighway from intruding on the privacy of Americans who use it, the government said in a report Monday.

``Concerns about safeguarding privacy will likely grow as the [information superhighway] becomes a pervasive, functioning reality,'' a Commerce Department report said. As the superhighway is built, it noted, increasing numbers of people will use it for an ever-expanding range of transactions related to banking, entertainment, education, health care and other areas.

``These transactions, by their very execution ... create electronic records which are easily stored and processed,'' the report said.

The nation's telephone, computer and video companies should voluntarily agree to notify consumers about how their personal data would be used and to get their permission before using it, the report recommended. If not, ``government action will be needed to safeguard the legitimate privacy interests of American consumers,'' it said.

``What we're saying is, `Let industry develop these standards,''' Larry Irving, assistant secretary for communications and information, told reporters. ``If industry doesn't step up to the plate and protect consumers, at that point you've got to consider other alternatives.''

by CNB