OMB Issues Federal 'Cookies' Guidelines

The White House Office of Management and Budget issued new policies June 25 governing how agencies can interact with the public online and collect information from visitors to their Websites with so-called "cookie" files and other technologies.

The new guidelines specify that agencies must ensure that third party sites and applications meet federal standards for privacy protections. The rules also set parameters for collecting personally identifiable information about online users, using social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, and participating in webinars or virtual town halls meetings. Personal information only can be gathered about visitors to federal sites if those parties have actively "opted in" to the data collection. Agencies are prohibited from tracking a user's online activity on non-government Websites