Twitter adopts FTC’s Do Not Track option

Twitter announced Thursday that it will allow its users to choose not to have their online activities tracked.

The company said it will not monitor which websites users visit if they select the Do Not Track option in their Web browser.

{mosads}Social media companies like Twitter and Facebook are able to collect page visit information from other sites that feature their tools, such as the “tweet” and “like” buttons.

The policy will initially apply only to Mozilla’s Firefox browser, but Twitter is expected to expand the policy to the other major browsers.

The announcement was first made by Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chief technology officer Ed Felten at an event in New York on Thursday.

Twitter then confirmed the news.

“We applaud the FTC’s leadership on Do Not Track, and are excited to provide the benefits of Do Not Track,” Twitter spokeswoman Carolyn Penner said in a statement.

The FTC, under Chairman Jon Leibowitz, has made online privacy protection one of its top priorities.

The agency has sued companies, including Twitter, for mismanaging their customers’ personal data.

The FTC first proposed a Do Not Track button in 2010. The concept was modeled on the agency’s popular “Do Not Call” list, which allows consumers to opt out of receiving telemarketing calls.

Leibowitz has urged Web companies to voluntarily set up a system for users to opt out of online tracking, and warns that legislation will be necessary if they fail to act.

Leibowitz applauded Twitter’s announcement on Thursday.

“Twitter’s use of Do Not Track in its new feature is good news for Twitter users and a meaningful step toward broader adoption of a strong Do Not Track system that will give consumers simple, comprehensive control over online tracking,” he said in a statement. “Hopefully other companies will follow suit.”

Earlier this year, the major Web browsers promised to create a Do Not Track feature, and a coalition of advertising trade groups promised to stop tracking the activities of users who had selected the option.

Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.), chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee with jurisdiction over the FTC and its privacy initiatives, called Twitter’s announcement the “responsible thing to do.”