February 6, 2024 at 04:58PM
Mozilla expanded its privacy-monitoring service with Monitor Plus, aiming to remove subscribers’ data from data brokers’ sites for $8.99/month. This move reflects revenue diversification efforts and responds to growing privacy concerns. The service, offering wider data removal coverage than competitors, anticipates the influence of upcoming data protection laws and regulations.
Based on the meeting notes, the key takeaways are:
1. Mozilla has introduced a paid tier service called Mozilla Monitor Plus, which aims to get data brokers to delete subscribers’ personal information from their databases for a monthly fee of $8.99. This expansion is aimed at diversifying revenue streams for the company.
2. The service will work with over 190 data broker sites, twice the number of other competitors, to remove personal information. However, it is noted that this may be an incomplete and temporary fix, as sites may reacquire customer data, necessitating follow-up removal requests.
3. The data broker industry in the US is under increased scrutiny, with recent actions and regulations such as the Federal Trade Commission banning location data sharing and the proposed California Delete Act, which is expected to come into effect in 2026.
4. The introduction of the California Delete Act may soon make services like Monitor Plus unnecessary for Californians since they will have the legal right to request data deletion from data brokers.
These takeaways provide a clear understanding of Mozilla’s new service offering, the regulatory landscape of data privacy, and the potential impact of upcoming legislation on the need for privacy protection services.