[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 63 (Thursday, April 1, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17155-17156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-7257]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION


Public Workshop: Monitoring Software on Your PC: Spyware, Adware, 
and Other Software

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

ACTION: Extension of Public Comment Period Until May 21, 2004.

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SUMMARY: The FTC announces that the time period during which persons 
may submit written comments on the issues to be addressed by the public 
workshop has been extended.

DATES: Comments must be received by May 21, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments. 
Comments should refer to ``Spyware Workshop--Comment, P044509,'' to 
facilitate the organization of comments. A comment filed in paper form 
should include this reference both in the text and on the envelope, and 
should be mailed or delivered, with two complete copies, to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission/Office of the Secretary, 
Room 159-H (Annex B), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
20580. Comments containing confidential material must be filed in paper 
form, as explained in the Supplementary Information section. The FTC is 
requesting that any comment filed in paper form be sent by courier or 
overnight service, if possible, because U.S. postal mail in the 
Washington area and at the Commission is subject to delay due to 
heightened security precautions. Comments filed in electronic form 
should be sent to the following e-mail box: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beverly Thomas, 202-326-2938, Dean 
Forbes, 202-326-2831, or David Koehler, 202-326-3627, Division of 
Advertising Practices, Federal Trade Commission. The above staff can be 
reached by mail at: Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20580. To read the Commission's policy on how it 
handles the information you may submit, please visit http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background on Workshop Goals

    On April 19, 2004, the FTC is planning to host a public workshop, 
``Monitoring Software on Your PC: Spyware, Adware, and Other 
Software,'' to explore the issues associated with the distribution and 
effects of software that aids in gathering information about a person 
or organization without their knowledge and which may send such 
information to another entity without the consumer's consent, or 
asserts control over a computer without the consumer's knowledge. 
Questions to be addressed at the workshops are set forth in the 
Commission's Notice Announcing Public Workshop and Requesting Public 
Comment, published in the Federal Register on February 24, 2004.

Form and Availability of Comments

    The time period during which public comments may be submitted has 
been extended. Interested parties may submit written comments on the 
questions and issues addressed by the workshop until May 21, 2004. 
Especially useful are any studies, surveys, research, and empirical 
data. Comments should refer to ``Spyware Workshop--Comment, P044509,'' 
to facilitate the organization of comments. A comment filed in paper 
form should include this reference both in the text and on the 
envelope, and

[[Page 17156]]

should be mailed or delivered, with two complete copies, to the 
following address: Federal Trade Commission/Office of the Secretary, 
Room 159-H (Annex B), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
20580. If the comment contains any material for which confidential 
treatment is requested, it must be filed in paper (rather than 
electronic) form, and the first page of the document must be clearly 
labeled ``Confidential.'' \1\ The FTC is requesting that any comment 
filed in paper form be sent by courier or overnight service, if 
possible, because U.S. postal mail in the Washington area and at the 
Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security precautions. 
Comments filed in electronic form should be sent to the following e-
mail box: [email protected].
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    \1\ Commission Rule 4.2(d), 16 CFR 4.2(d). The comment must also 
be accompanied by an explicit request for confidential treatment, 
including the factual and legal basis for the request, and must 
identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from 
the public record. The request will be granted or denied by the 
Commission's General Counsel, consistent with applicable law and the 
public interest. See Commission Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c).
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    The FTC Act and other laws the Commission administers permit the 
collection of public comments to consider and use in this proceeding as 
appropriate. All timely and responsive public comments, whether filed 
in paper or electronic form, will be considered by the Commission, and 
will be available to the public on the FTC Web site, to the extent 
practicable, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/comments/spyware/index.html. As a 
matter of discretion, the FTC makes every effort to remove home contact 
information for individuals from the public comments it receives before 
placing those comments on the FTC Web site. More information, including 
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, may be found in the FTC's 
privacy policy, at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm.

Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 04-7257 Filed 3-31-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M