,,ii #aahth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bgjh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,july #bg1 #bjbc,mr4 ,warner 7for himself1 ,mrs4 ,fischer1 ,ms4 ,klobuchar1 and ,mr4 ,thune7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,a ,,bill ,to prohibit the use of exploitative and deceptive practices by large online operators and to promote transparency and consumer choice in the use of behavioral research by such providers4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,deceptive ,experiences ,to ,online ,users ,reduction ,act or the ,,detour ,act4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,affirmative ,express consent ,the term affirmative express consent-- 7,a7 means an affirmative act by a user that-- 7i7 clearly communicates the user's authorization for a specific act or practice for which the user's consent is sought to proceed2 7ii7 is freely taken by the user2 and 7iii7 is taken after the user is informed about the act or practice for which consent is sought1 including through the presentation to the user of a clear and conspicuous description of the act or practice2 and 7,b7 does not include-- 7i7 the consent of a child or teen2 or 7ii7 the consent to a provision contained in a general contract or service agreement4 7#b7 ,aggregated data ,the term aggregated data means data that have been combined or collected together in summary or other form such that the data is not linked or reasonably linkable to any individual4 7#c7 ,auto-play ,the term auto-play means the automatic playing of content selected by a personalized recommendation system for a user4 7#d7 ,child ,the term child has the meaning given such term in section #acjb of the ,children's ,online ,privacy ,protection ,act of #aiih 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #feja74 7#e7 ,commission ,the term ,commission means the ,federal ,trade ,commission4 7#f7 ,compulsive usage ,the term compulsive usage means any response stimulated by external factors that causes an individual to engage in repetitive behavior causing psychological distress1 loss of control1 anxiety1 depression1 or harmful stress responses4 7#g7 ,covered research ,the term covered research means behavioral or psychological experimentation or research1 including through human experimentation1 of overt or observable user actions on online platforms1 including interactions between and among individuals and the activities of social groups1 that involves interventions that are designed by the experimenter or researcher to alter or manipulate the emotions of users4 7#h7 ,de-identified data ,the term de-identified data means information that-- 7,a7 does not identify and is not linked or reasonably linkable to a distinct individual or a device1 regardless of whether the information is aggregated2 and 7,b7 does not contain any persistent identifier or other information that could readily be used to reidentify1 or link the information to1 the individual to whom1 or the device to which1 the identifier or information pertains4 7#i7 ,independent review board ,the term independent review board means a board1 committee1 or other group that-- 7,a7 serves to-- 7i7 protect the autonomy and privacy of users2 7ii7 prevent exploitative and manipulative acts or practices2 7iii7 promote transparent principles of user interface and user experience design2 7iv7 promote research in keeping with best practices of covered research2 and 7v7 continually evaluate industry practices and issue guidance consistent with the objectives of this ,act2 and 7,b7 is formally designated by a large online operator to review1 to approve the initiation of1 and to conduct ongoing periodic reviews of1 any covered research by1 or at the direction or discretion of1 a large online operator1 involving human subjects4 7#aj7 ,large online operator ,the term large online operator means any person that-- 7,a7 provides an online service that has more than #ajj1jjj1jjj authenticated users of an online service in any #cj-;day period2 and 7,b7 is subject to the jurisdiction of the ,commission under the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq474 7#aa7 ,online service ,the term online service means a website or a service1 other than an internet access service1 that is made available to the public over the internet1 including a social network1 a search engine1 or an email service4 7#ab7 ,publicly available information ,the term publicly available information means any information that a large online operator has a reasonable basis to believe has been lawfully made available to the general public from-- 7,a7 ,federal1 ,state1 or local government records2 7,b7 widely distributed media1 including-- 7i7 information from a telephone book or online directory2 7ii7 television1 internet1 or radio content or programming2 or 7iii7 a website or online service made available to all members of the public1 for free or for a fee1 including where all members of the public1 for free or for a fee1 can log in to the website or online service2 7,c7 a disclosure to the general public that is required to be made by ,federal1 ,state1 or local law2 or 7,d7 the visual observation of the physical presence of an individual or a device in a public place1 not including data collected by a device in the possession of the individual4 7#ac7 ,teen ,the term teen means an individual over the age of #ab and under the age of #ag4 7#ad7 ,user ,the term user means any individual who engages with an online service4 7#ae7 ,user autonomy ,the term user autonomy means the technical ability of a user to interact with a user interface of an online service in a manner that aligns with personal intent4 7#af7 ,user data ,the term user data-- 7,a7 means any information that identifies or is linked or reasonably linkable to an individual or a device that is linked or reasonably linkable to an individual1 whether directly submitted to the large online operator by the user or derived from the observed activity of the user by the large online operator2 and 7,b7 does not include-- 7i7 aggregated data2 7ii7 de-identified data2 or 7iii7 publicly available information1 or inferences derived solely based on publicly available information4 7#ag7 ,user experience ,the term user experience means how a user interacts with an online service4 7#ah7 ,user interface ,the term user interface means the point at which a user interacts with a system1 device1 or process of an online service4 #c4 ,unfair and deceptive acts and practices relating to the manipulation of user interfaces 7a7 ,conduct prohibited ,it shall be unlawful for any large online operator-- 7#a7 to design1 modify1 or manipulate a user interface on an online service with the purpose or substantial effect of obscuring1 subverting1 or impairing user autonomy1 decision making1 or choice to obtain consent or user data2 7#b7 to subdivide or segment consumers of online services into groups for the purposes of covered research1 except with the affirmative express consent of each user involved2 or 7#c7 to design1 modify1 or manipulate a user interface on an online service1 or portion of a user interface or online service1 that is directed to a child or teen with the purpose or substantial effect of causing1 increasing1 or encouraging compulsive usage1 including using video auto-play functions initiated without the consent of a user4 7b7 ,duties of large online operators ,any large online operator that engages in any form of covered research based on the activity or data of the users of the large online operator shall do each of the following3 7#a7 ,disclose to its users on a routine basis1 but not less than once each #ij days1 the general purpose of any such covered research to each user whose user data is or was subject to or included in any covered research during the previous #ij-;day period4 7#b7 ,disclose to the public on a routine basis1 but not less than once each #ij days1 any covered research with the purposes of promoting engagement or product conversion being currently undertaken1 or concluded since the prior disclosure4 7#c7 ,present the disclosures described in paragraphs 7#a7 and 7#b7 in a manner that is-- 7,a7 clear1 conspicuous1 context-appropriate1 and easily accessible2 and 7,b7 not deceptively obscured4 7#d7 7,a7 ,subject to subparagraph 7,b71 remove and delete all user data obtained from affected users in the course of covered research if the large online operator-- 7i7 determines 7or determines that it has reason to believe7 that the affirmative express consent required under this section from such users was not acquired2 and 7ii7 is unable to obtain within #b business days of such determination the affirmative express consent required under this section4 7,b7 ,if unable to remove and delete user data pursuant to subparagraph 7,a71 discontinue the covered research4 7#e77;,a7 ,establish a process by which a user may choose to opt out of covered research at a later date from when the user previously provided affirmative express consent for such research4 7,b7 ,subject to subparagraph 7,a71 following the decision of a user to opt out1 stop collecting1 processing1 or transferring any data from such user for the purposes of the covered research4 7#f7 ,establish an independent review board that shall-- 7,a7 develop1 on a continuing basis and using the resources developed under section #d1 guidance and rules for the development of user interface and user experience design of the large online operator that are consistent with the requirements of subsection 7a7 of this section2 and 7,b7 review and have authority to approve1 require modification in1 or disapprove all covered research conducted on users or on the basis of user activity or data consistent with subsection 7a77#b74 7#g7 ,ensure that any independent review board established under paragraph 7#f7 registers with the ,commission1 including providing to the ,commission-- 7,a7 the names and resumes of every member of the independent review board2 7,b7 the composition and reporting structure of the independent review board to the management of the large online operator2 7,c7 the process by which the independent review board is to be notified of covered research or modifications of covered research1 along with the processes by which the independent review board is capable of vetoing or amending such research2 7,d7 any compensation provided to members of the independent review board2 and 7,e7 any conflict of interest that might exist concerning the participation of an individual on the independent review board4 #d4 ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology ,resources 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #edj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology shall1 acting through the ,information ,technology ,laboratory of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology1 conduct research to develop and disseminate consensus-based resources consistent with subsection 7b7 that provide recommendations for user interface and user experience design that support user autonomy1 choice1 and decision making in providing user consent for online services4 7b7 ,content of resources ,the resources developed under subsection 7a7 shall-- 7#a7 involve methodology for usability testing to identify usability problems by collecting quantitative and qualitative data to determine the ability of users to navigate options to achieve the specified goals of user autonomy1 choice1 and decision making in user interface and user experience design2 7#b7 include examples or demonstrations of user interface design that may restrict the user autonomy1 choice1 or decision making of a user2 and 7#c7 include methodology to evaluate the ability to identify default settings that impair user autonomy4 #e4 ,enforcement by the ,commission 7a7 ,unfair or deceptive acts or practices ,a violation of section #c or a regulation promulgated under this ,act shall be treated as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or practice under section #ah7;a77#a77;,b7 of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #eg;a7a77#a77;,b774 7b7 ,powers of the ,commission 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,commission shall enforce section #c and the regulations promulgated under this ,act in the same manner1 by the same means1 and with the same jurisdiction1 powers1 and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq47 were incorporated into and made a part of this ,act4 7#b7 ,privileges and immunities ,any person who violates section #c or a regulation promulgated under this ,act shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities provided in the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq474 7#c7 ,authority preserved ,nothing in this ,act shall be construed to limit or expand the authority of the ,commission under any other provision of law4 7#d7 ,regulations ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,commission shall promulgate regulations under section #eec of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 that-- 7,a7 establish rules for the registration1 formation1 and oversight of independent review boards1 including standards that ensure effective independence of such boards from improper or undue influence by a large online operator2 and 7,b7 using the resources produced by the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology under section #d as guidance1 define conduct that does not have the purpose or substantial effect of-- 7i7 obscuring1 subverting1 or impairing user autonomy1 decision making1 or choice2 or 7ii7 causing1 increasing1 or encouraging compulsive usage for a child or teen1 such as-- 7,i7 de minimis user interface changes derived from testing consumer preferences where such changes of design elements are not done solely to obtain affirmative express consent or user data2 7,,ii7 algorithms or data outputs outside the control of a large online operator or the affiliates of such operator2 and 7,,iii7 establishing default settings that provide enhanced privacy protection to users or otherwise enhance the autonomy and decision-making ability of such users4 7#e7 ,safe harbor ,the ,commission may not bring an enforcement action under this ,act against any large online operator that relied in good faith on the definitions developed under paragraph 7#d77;,b74