Privacy Groups Seek to Block Disclosures by Amazon.com

Two privacy groups unhappy about Amazon.com Inc.’s new policies on revealing customer buying habits asked federal regulators Monday to prevent the online retailer from making any disclosures unless shoppers permit them.

Junkbusters Corp. and the Electronic Privacy Information Center made the appeal to the Federal Trade Commission, which has intervened when other online retailers changed privacy policies and sought to sell customer data.

In August, Amazon revised its policy, telling customers it considers their information a company asset that can be sold if Amazon goes out of business or sells a division.

Such personal information includes names, shipping and billing addresses, credit card numbers and e-mail addresses.

Amazon also removed an option that allowed customers to decline having personal data shared with marketing companies and retailers.

Jason Catlett, chief executive of Junkbusters, called the changes “bait-and-switch tactics.”

In a joint letter, Catlett and Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, asked the FTC to prohibit Amazon from disclosing information about anyone who had opted out of having their data shared.

They also sought the option for customers to delete personal information already in Amazon’s computers as well as a requirement that the company state what information has already been disclosed.

Amazon spokeswoman Patty Smith said deletion is impractical because the e-tailer needs records for auditing purposes. And she said any data sharing is now done only to complete transactions.