Microsoft Giving Passport Users More Control Over Data; Result Of Pressure From EU; EU said the software raised concerns about legalities, as well as security of data.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)

Byline: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Microsoft Corp. will give all users of its Passport online authentication system more control over how their personal information is shared, following months of discussions with the European Union. Among other revisions, Microsoft will change its Passport system in the next 18 months to let users select which sites within the network may have access to what personal information -- including name, country of residence, occupation, birth date and other data, said Adam Sohn, product manager in the .Net platform strategy group. The changes come after months of talks with the EU, which questioned whether Passport violated its data-protection laws. Although Microsoft contended the service adhered to privacy rules, EU officials said it raised legal concerns, including the value of the consent given by users and the security risks of the data transfer. Enter Multiple Sites The Passport system allows users who have registered with the service to enter personal data just once and use that digital "passport" to enter multiple Web sites, including eBay, Starbucks and Microsoft's MSN network, without re-entering the same data or creating a new password. Sohn said Microsoft has been working on some of the ...