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University of Colorado Law School Associate Professor Paul Ohm will serve in the Federal Trade Commission as a senior policy adviser for consumer protection and competition issues affecting the Internet and mobile markets.
Ohm will take a leave of absence to serve at the FTC and begin his new position Aug. 27 in the agency鈥檚 Office of Policy Planning, which focuses on the development and implementation of long-range competition and consumer protection policy initiatives, and advises staff on cases raising new or complex policy and legal issues.
鈥淧aul鈥檚 keen insights on how the law applies to technology and privacy issues will be invaluable to the FTC鈥檚 work in these areas,鈥� said FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz.听 鈥淲e have been fortunate in bringing in a series of top-notch experts to advise us on cutting-edge issues and enhance our in-house expertise.听 We look forward to having Paul on board.鈥�
Ohm specializes in information privacy, computer crime law, intellectual property and criminal procedure, with a particular focus on building new connections between law and computer science. Much of his work has examined how evolving technology disrupts individual privacy. His 2010 article,听鈥淏roken Promises of Privacy: Responding to the Surprising Failure of Anonymization,鈥� has sparked an international debate about the impact on privacy of significant recent advances in data analytics.
鈥滻 am honored to have received this appointment,鈥� Ohm said. 鈥淭he FTC is the focal point for so many of the important information privacy debates taking place today. I hope to help the Commissioners and staff of this great agency continue the important work they have done to protect consumers online.鈥�
His appointment to the FTC will mark the second time Ohm will serve the government focusing on privacy. He previously worked on similar issues as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
鈥淧aul Ohm is at the forefront of privacy scholarship and already a leader of his generation in the field,鈥� said Phil Weiser, dean of the CU Law School.听 鈥淎t the Silicon Flatirons Center, Paul is the leader on information technology and intellectual property issues and has established the center as a formidable presence on privacy and Internet policy issues.听 We will miss him dearly at Colorado Law, but we respect his commitment to public service and will look forward to his return.鈥�
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Contact:
Paul Ohm, 303-492-0384
paul.ohm@colorado.edu
Keri Ungemah, 303-492-3124
Keri.ungemah@colorado.edu
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Paul Ohm (Photo by Glenn Asakawa/University of Colorado)