WASHINGTON: US retailers including Walmart will add"Do Not Sell My Info" links to their websites and signage in stores starting Jan 1, allowing California shoppers to understand for the first time what personal and other data the retailers collect, sources said.
The law follows Europe's controversial General Data Protection Regulation, which set a new standard for how companies collect, store and use personal data. There is also lack of clarity on what constitutes"sale" of information, retail lobbyists and attorneys advising retailers said. Target spokeswoman Jessica Carlson said a"Do Not Sell" button on its website, will be visible to all US shoppers and California residents will have access to information outlined under the new law. Target already allows its shoppers to opt out of sharing their information with third parties for marketing purposes, she said.
Both Walmart and Amazon have ramped up investments in drawing out"data maps" in the past few months, which lets them collate the extent of personal information collected by different business units, where and how this information is stored, what they do with it and who it is shared with, sources said.