Klaas: Metromail/Donnelley response shows need to criminalize conduct; legislation needed as companies seek to avoid accountability for dangerous and deceptive practices using children's data.WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 30, 1997-- Monday's press release from Marc Klaas and the Kids Off Lists Coalition reported the expansion of a class action suit against Metromail Corporation (ML.N) and its former parent, R.R. Donnelley & Sons (DNY DNY display area code (NYX) routing (US DoD) DNY Downstate New York .N), over privacy violations. The original lawsuit was filed in April 1996 by Beverly Dennis, an Ohio grandmother who completed a Metromail consumer survey thinking she would receive product samples. Instead, she got a sexually graphic and threatening letter from a convicted rapist who learned intimate information about her while keypunching data from the surveys in a Texas prison. New plaintiffs and expanded claims were recently added, targeting such Metromail abuses as collecting consumer survey information about families by promising to put them on "mailing lists" for "free coupons," but then making the information about young children and others available for sale to anyone over a "1-900" people-finder service for $3 a minute. A Metromail press release late Monday claimed the Kids Off Lists release was "misleading," and also attacked Beverly Dennis' attorneys. Donnelley deferred comment to Metromail. Marc Klaas, head of the Marc Klaas Foundation for Children, and founder of Kids Off Lists, responded: "Metromail and Donnelley are fond of attacking their critics' motives, but the excuses are always short on substance. They have already admitted taking consumer survey information from parents and then putting the kids' information on people-locator services. That's what's significant here." Marc Rotenberg Marc Rotenberg is a law professor and the Executive Director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). He teaches at Georgetown University Law Center. He has won a number of awards, including the EFF Pioneer Award in 1997, the Norbert Wiener Award for Social and , director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center Electronic Privacy Information Center or EPIC is a public interest research group in Washington D.C.. It was established in 1994 to focus public attention on emerging civil liberties issues and to protect privacy, the First Amendment, and constitutional values in the (EPIC) in Washington, D.C., underscored Klaas' sentiments: "Metromail/Donnelley should spend less energy on public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most and more on privacy protection. Their disregard for personal privacy will ultimately lead to a crackdown on marketing practices across the entire industry." On Monday, Robert Ellis Robert Ellis is the name of: Historical Persons
Klaas agreed that Metromail's and Donnelley's unapologetic attitude regarding the misuse of children's data proves the need for legislation to criminalize crim·i·nal·ize tr.v. crim·i·nal·ized, crim·i·nal·iz·ing, crim·i·nal·iz·es 1. To impose a criminal penalty on or for; outlaw. 2. To treat as a criminal. such conduct: "The harder these companies dig in to defend these practices, the more obvious it is that legislation is needed to outlaw them." Klaas added: "I urge parents everywhere to follow this case and to support `Kids Of Lists' legislation." Bills have already been introduced in California and New Jersey, and others are being readied elsewhere, to ban the sale of children's data without parental consent Parental consent laws (also known as parental involvement or parental notification laws) in some countries require that one or more parents consent to or be notified before their minor child can legally engage in certain activities. , force companies like Metromail to tell parents where it obtains data on their kids, outlaw 900 number "look-up" services on children, and bar prison labor from processing children's data. John Aristotle Phillips John Aristotle Phillips, known as the A-Bomb Kid, was a junior undergraduate at Princeton University in 1977 when he designed a nuclear weapon using publicly-available books and papers. , a Metromail competitor and supporter of Kids Off Lists, said that the Metromail/Donnelley defense of the 900 number is particularly symbolic of management's lack of fitness to maintain dossiers on 90% of American families: "How would you feel if you filled out one of these surveys promising "free coupons," and then your child's or grandchild's name, address and age was made available to anyone -- even pedophiles -- on a `900' number." He renewed his call on Metromail President Susan Henricks and Donnelley CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. William Davis to apologize to those parents and grandparents grandparents npl → abuelos mpl grandparents grand npl → grands-parents mpl grandparents grand npl who had been deceived. Addendum: Earlier this month, the two claims against the Texas state prison system and its representatives in the Beverly Dennis lawsuit were dismissed on governmental immunity governmental immunity n. the doctrine from English Common Law that no governmental body can be sued unless it gives permission. This protection resulted in terrible injustices, since public hospitals, government drivers and other employees could be negligent with grounds. Although Metromail called this a "significant blow" to the plaintiff's claims, Metromail and Donnelley do not have governmental immunity and the dismissal does not affect the consumers' case against the companies. None of the seven claims against Metromail, Donnelley, or its subcontractor has been dismissed. -0- Note to Editors: For comment from Marc Klaas (Kids Off Lists), phone 415/331-6867; for EPIC: 202/544-9240; for John Phillips 415/882-9924; For Privacy Journal: 401/274-7861. -0- William Davis, Susan Henricks, Privacy, Pedophiles, Prisoners, Donnelley, Metromail, Class Action Lawsuit class action lawsuit A lawsuit in which one party or a limited number of parties sue on behalf of a larger group to which the parties belong. For example, investors may bring a class action lawsuit against a brokerage firm that has actively promoted a tax , Marc Klaas. CONTACT: Kids Off Lists Marc Klaas, 415/331-6867 |
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