• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Techdata privacy

How Much Is Your Data Worth to Facebook and Google? A New Senate Bill Aims to Find Out

By
Alyssa Newcomb
Alyssa Newcomb
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Alyssa Newcomb
Alyssa Newcomb
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 24, 2019, 6:49 PM ET

Facebook and Google are being challenged to put a price on how much each person’s data is worth―and provide a way for people to delete some, or all, of their information.

The Designing Accounting Safeguards to Help Broaden Oversight And Regulations on Data (DASHBOARD) Act, which was introduced on Monday, takes aim at companies that have more than 100 million monthly active users. The bill would pull back at least part of the curtain on the data collection practices of technology giants Facebook and Google—and potentially Twitter and Amazon among others—requiring the companies to file an annual report that puts a total value on the data they’ve collected, as well as disclose contracts with third parties regarding data collection.

“For years, social media companies have told consumers that their products are free to the user. But that’s not true—you are paying with your data instead of your wallet,” says Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), one of the co-sponsors of the legislation. Warner, a former technology entrepreneur who amassed a fortune in telecommunications, is one of big tech’s loudest critics in Congress.

While there are already ways to manually delete some of your Facebook or Google data, perhaps the most interesting piece of the bill is that the senators are asking tech companies to put a price tag on each person’s information. However, deciding what a person’s interests, likes, or the time they spend online isn’t easy to quantify, since every platform is different.

If the bill passes, that task would fall to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Dashboard Act wants the SEC “develop methodologies for calculating data value, while encouraging the agency to facilitate flexibility to enable businesses to adopt methodologies that reflect the different uses, sectors, and business models.”

“The importance of this is that historically we have been led to believe that these services are free. The value of our data is somewhat obfuscated,” says Ashkan Soltani, an independent researcher and the former chief technology officer at the Federal Trade Commission.

Soltani says the SEC is the right place to create methodologies for a possible future framework that puts a price tag on each person’s data. In their annual 10-K filings with the SEC, companies are already required to estimate the potential harm to their business, in the event of a data breach.

The introduction of the bill also comes as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been vocal in recent months about asking for Facebook to be regulated.

“A common global framework–rather than regulation that varies significantly by country and state–will ensure that the Internet does not get fractured, entrepreneurs can build products that serve everyone, and everyone gets the same protections,” Zuckerberg wrote in an op-ed that was published in March.

When asked about the Dashboard Act, a Facebook spokesperson told Fortune that “we look forward to continuing our conversations with the bill’s sponsors.” A Google spokesperson declined to comment.

Lindsey Barrett, a teaching fellow and staff attorney at Georgetown Law’s Communications and Technology Clinic, says if the bill became a law, it could be valuable in that it will provide “more insight into how tech companies actually work… particularly in terms of how they share people’s data with third parties.”

However, she says the basic premise of the bill is “slightly misguided.”

According to Barrett, the bill doesn’t grapple with the issues of alternatives to the giant social networks. Also, the users are overwhelmed with privacy decisions on a daily basis. “The most significant problem in the tech ecosystem isn’t that people lack information, though that certainly is a problem,” she says. “It’s that companies face few limitations on what they’re allowed to do with people’s data.”

The Dashboard Act has some parallels to the California Consumer Privacy Act (COPA), according to Soltani. That law, which goes into effect in January 2020, will require companies that do business in California, or with Californians, to create complex tools that show data they collect, organize it, and give consumers an easy way to delete it.

However, the thresholds for compliance between Dashboard and COPA are different. While the federal bill targets companies with more than 100 million monthly active users, California’s law focuses on companies with more than $25 million in revenue, those that receive or disclose personal information from more than 50,000 California residents, or make at least half of their revenue from selling Californians’ data.

Even that is proving difficult for companies to comply with: In March, 86% of companies hadn’t completed steps to become compliant, according to a survey published from TrustArc, a security and compliance firm.

But on the federal level, Soltani says the Dashboard Act is laying the groundwork for a future comprehensive privacy package affording consumers more protections, while holding companies to higher standards of disclosure, in a way that could be on par with Europe’s GDPR privacy laws.

“This is one of the many features people are starting to think is important about a larger privacy package,” he says.

About the Author
By Alyssa Newcomb
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

murdochs
CommentaryMedia
OpenAI paid $100 million for a talk show. James Murdoch is eyeing an even bigger deal. The hot new asset class is humanity
By Lin CherryMay 17, 2026
2 hours ago
dennis
CommentaryAI agents
Freshworks CEO: why agile enterprises are winning the AI race — and what they did differently
By Dennis WoodsideMay 17, 2026
2 hours ago
A man with a headset sits at a desk in a call center.
EconomyAutomation
The AI boom hasn’t stopped U.S. companies from hiring cheap offshore labor, and overseas call center employment is still skyrocketing
By Sasha RogelbergMay 17, 2026
3 hours ago
Zillow CEO doubles down on remote-work model: ‘There is talent everywhere in this country’
Workplace Cultureremote work
Zillow CEO doubles down on remote-work model: ‘There is talent everywhere in this country’
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 17, 2026
3 hours ago
Stressed job seeker
SuccessGen Z
Gen Z is right about the job hunt—it really is worse than it was for millennials, with nearly 60% of fresh-faced grads frozen out of the workforce
By Emma BurleighMay 17, 2026
3 hours ago
A 45,000-person labor strike at Samsung’s memory chip plants could throw a wrench into the AI boom
EconomySamsung
A 45,000-person labor strike at Samsung’s memory chip plants could throw a wrench into the AI boom
By Catherina GioinoMay 17, 2026
6 hours ago

Most Popular

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
AI
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
1 day ago
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
Politics
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
By Jason MaMay 16, 2026
17 hours ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
5 days ago
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
Future of Work
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
1 day ago
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
Future of Work
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
By Jacqueline MunisMay 16, 2026
1 day ago
SpaceX heads into a record-shattering IPO with the 'deepest moat that exists today' as investors vow to 'never bet against Elon'
Innovation
SpaceX heads into a record-shattering IPO with the 'deepest moat that exists today' as investors vow to 'never bet against Elon'
By Jason MaMay 16, 2026
22 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.