From...

September 7, 1999
Web posted at: 9:31 a.m. EDT (1331 GMT)

by Kathleen Ohlson

(IDG) -- Presidential candidates vying for contributors and volunteers have a long way to go in protecting information about their supporters online, according to the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT).

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The Washington-based organization surveyed the presidential sites of Gary Bauer, Pat Buchanan, George W. Bush, Elizabeth Dole, Steve Forbes, Orrin Hatch, Alan Keyes, John McCain, Dan Quayle, Bill Bradley and Al Gore on Aug. 27. These sites ask contributors and volunteers to provide personal data such as name, address, employer, occupation and credit-card information for online contributions, CDT said. In the past, campaigns have allegedly sold or traded this information, the organization added.

CDT said it checked whether candidates' Web sites posted privacy policies on home pages or where personal information was collected. Five candidates -- Bradley, Forbes, Gore, Hatch and McCain -- listed a privacy policy on either their home, volunteer or contributor pages, CDT said. Gore and McCain ranked at the top of the survey while Bauer, Buchanan, Bush, Dole and Quayle finished at the bottom.

CDT sent follow-up questions to each of these campaigns over privacy policies. Issues included whether individuals can remove themselves from lists at a later date or access personal information held by the campaign about them.