In a blog post for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Jamie Hine discusses how companies should keep the privacy promises made prior to a merger or acquisition. The post comes shortly after concerns that RadioShack is set to sell millions of consumers’ personal information to the highest bidder after declaring bankruptcy, even though it had promised not to do so previously. “The commission recognizes that to innovate and keep pace in today’s economy, businesses may acquire other companies or sell business units,” Hine wrote. “However, companies must still live up to their privacy promises. One company’s purchase of another doesn’t nullify the privacy promises made when the data was first collected.” Companies face two choices: Respect the earlier privacy promise, or get permission from consumers first. .Editor’s Note: The IAPP held a recent Web Conference on privacy issues during mergers and acquisitions.
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