Joseph Burns

In the following viewpoint, Joseph Burns argues that the concern about the invasion of personal privacy by the owners of websites on the Internet has been blown out of proportion. He asserts that all businesses—on the Internet or not—keep track of who their customers are. Furthermore, he maintains, no business knows any personal information about their customers unless it is given to them, which is not an invasion of privacy. What consumers should truly be concerned about, he contends, is the selling of their personal data by businesses without permission. Burns is an assistant professor of communications specializing in Internet issues at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Burns, why must website owners know who is using their sites...