Insider Q&A: Privacy advocate sees growing public alarm

By MARCY GORDON
AP Business Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jeffrey Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, has advocated in Washington for privacy protection over the last 25 years, warning U.S. lawmakers and regulators about growing threats to Americans’ online privacy. New moves are afoot, as the Federal Trade Commission looks at crafting rules to crack down on what it sees as harmful commercial surveillance, and national privacy legislation has gotten closer than ever to passage in Congress. Chester sees a growing backlash over the uncontrolled use of personal information by companies such as Google, Amazon, Meta and TikTok.