Facts You Should Know about the TRUSTe EU Safe Harbor Seal Program
Nearly 200 companies are current members or are nearing certification in TRUSTe’s EU Safe Harbor Seal Program and taking advantage of the Watchdog Dispute Resolution Program.
Click here to review relevant and helpful information about TRUSTe’s EU Safe Harbor Seal Program
In 2007, TRUSTe handled 986 EU-related consumer complaints and as of Sept. 26, 2008 we resolved 1,220 consumer complaints. Every consumer contact receives personal attention by a TRUSTe staff member.
We believe the number of complaints we resolve to be an order of magnitude higher than reported by any other EU Safe Harbor privacy program or consumer dispute resolution organization.
TRUSTe deliberately makes it easy for consumers to file complaints by making the process transparent, accessible, and available in multiple languages. The responsiveness and speed with which we share complaint information with business participants has enabled us to address potentially urgent privacy issues and to get licensees to fix unintentional security vulnerabilities within hours.
We also are committed to preserving the reputations of participating companies who want to demonstrate their privacy accountability. When we have the consent of the consumer, as a courtesy we also forward non-privacy program complaints so that sealholder may address any concerns of their consumers.
In 2007, ten complaints directly concerning the EU Safe Harbor Seal Program involved changes to a licensee's site and/or privacy practices. In 2008, so far, seven complaints involved changes to a licensee's site and/or privacy practices. TRUSTe licensees care about their brand and consumer good will and the vast majority cure even before we ever send a Notice of Suspension or of Termination.
The range of corrective actions taken by TRUSTe’s EU sealholders in the complaints noted included the following:
Heightened transparency and consumer choice through changes in options at the point of collection of certain PII,
Changes and clarifications to privacy policies,
Implementation of robust mechanisms for removing or deleting data upon consumer request,
Addressing data integrity issues through facilitating the closure or merger of multiple accounts and correcting technical glitches to consumer access to certain accounts;
Addressing circumstances where security vulnerabilities existed and the licensees’ notification of affected consumers.
Our policy, as you know, is to recognize good actors through our seal programs. We reserve public reporting of compliance and enforcement actions to circumstances where corrective action, when needed, is refused and also constitutes non-compliance with the EU Seal program requirements. We are independent and take appropriate compliance and enforcement action. A recent example under our general web privacy program includes the termination of Classic Closeouts in August 2008. TRUSTe is committed to its role in verifying compliance with the Safe Harbor Principles and supports business accountability for cross-border data transfers.
