' Nomination, P004807 I am writing to respectfully nominate myself to serve on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Advisory Committee on Online Access and Security. I am Cindy Braddon, Vice President of Washington Affairs for The McGraw-Hill Companies. I represent a Corporation that is an active participant in global electronic commerce. The McGraw-Hill Companies is a global publishing, financial information and media service company with 16,500 employees in more than 40 states and 30 countries. We distribute our products and services via traditional media, as well as electronically, to customers around the globe. Clearly, it is imperative that customers have the necessary understanding of this new medium and the comfort level to take full advantage of the range of services and products it provides. The McGraw-Hill Companies made the commitment to work with customers, governments and industry back in 1997, when we developed a comprehensive and model Customer Privacy Policy and launched it at the FTC's Public Workshop on Consumer Information Policy on June 11, 1997. As Co-Chair of the Corporation's Privacy Steering Committee, I have been responsible for helping to develop and implement the Corporation's Customer Privacy Policy. I am working closely with our business managers, product developers, technology experts, lawyers, marketers and others to assure that our Corporation's Policy continues to be updated to reflect changes in technology, customer expectations, business practices and policymaker sentiment. We have developed a comprehensive internal compliance mechanism, and my office is responsible for conducting regular reviews of our Web sites to assure compliance with the Policy, working with our businesses on an ongoing basis and providing training. We also respond to customer inquiries about our Policy and information practices. I have been involved in the privacy debate from a policy standpoint over the same time frame working closely with our key trade associations (American Business Press, Magazine Publishers of America, Direct Marketing Association, Association of American Publishers and the U.S. Council for International Business, to name a few) on privacy issues and industry guidelines. We also organized and co-hosted the first Multi-Industry Forum on Customer Privacy on the Web in 1998, and participated in numerous industry outreach programs. Additionally, I have worked with Congress, the Commerce Department and FTC staff on these issues since 1997 as a strong proponent of industry self-regulation. I have co-authored with my fellow Co-Chair of our Corporation's Privacy Steering Committee, Katherine Roome, Vice President and Associate General Counsel, numerous comments submitted to both agencies on privacy issues, including comments focused on the FTC's proposed rules implementing the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Thank you for your consideration. If chosen, I will commit to making myself available to provide this Committee with the focus and time necessary. Sincerely, Cynthia H. Braddon |