If you were expecting a piece of feel-good news, unfortunately this isn’t it. Unless you are like me, and find relaxation in reading articles which are gravely concerning for the future of privacy and digital human rights. Either way, we got you covered: A recent study conducted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) put major league internet service providers on the line; and what they found might have you logging off. The FTC issued orders for information on consumer data practices, privacy, and the companies transparency in regards to such practices, and what they found was pretty horrifying.

Every once in a while our U.S. Congress does something that renews one’s faith in our elected officials at the top. And this is one of those times. Following the damning expose last month in the New York Times, You for Sale: Mapping, and Sharing, the Consumer Genome, in which Times journalist Natasha Singer moved a rock and shed light on the fact that data broker Acxiom, and others like them, are amassing, collating, correlating and selling far more personal data about you – yes, you – than you can possibly imagine, Congress has with lightening speed (literally a few weeks) demanded that Axciom, and others like them, including Experian, Epsilon, Equifax, Harte-Hanks, Intelius, Fair Isaac, Merkle, and Meredith Corp., respond to a demand for information about just what information they are gathering on pretty much every American, and just where they are getting it from, among other questions. The letter was signed by Congressmen Edward J. Markey, Henry Waxman, G.K. Butterfield, Bobby Rush, Joe Barton, Steve Chabot, Austin Scott and Jan Schakowsky.