UK Office of Fair Trading allows self-regulation of behavioural advertising

Trade representatives have scored a big win (or a pronounced "phew") for the behavioural advertising industry as the Office of Fair Trading has given internet advertisers a chance to self-regulate behavioural advertising, but said it will also draw up plans to crack down "should industry action prove ineffective". In August last year, the OFT launched an investigation into how companies, such as Google, Microsoft and the controversial behavioural targeting firm Phorm, use data gleaned on the habits and personal information of web users to target internet advertising. The OFT has today said that, for now, it lends its backing to a self-regulatory approach through the online advertising trade association, the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB). More from The Guardian here.