The Council of the European Union has approved new legislation that would require Web users to consent to Internet cookies.

Cookies, small programs that can be used to track Web movements, have come under fire as consumer groups, including the Federal Trade Commission, have sought to regulate companies that engage in targeted behavioral advertising.

While the current EU telecom law states that cookies are allowed if Internet users are notified of them and have an opt-out option, in practice, the law has been interpreted more loosely. In the United Kingdom, for example, the information commissioner’s office issued a directive emphasizing that sites should clearly direct users to a page where they can opt out.

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Online advertisers joined the blogger backlash against the Federal Trade Commission’s new guidelines that require bloggers, Twitterers and others to disclose any cash or freebies they’ve received to hawk stuff online.

Noting the new guidelines have created a “firestorm of controversy within the ad-supported interactive-media industry,” Interactive Advertising Bureau President Randall Rothenberg suggested the FTC rescind the new guidelines.

“These revisions are punitive to the online world and unfairly distinguish between the same speech, based on the medium in which it is delivered,” he wrote in an open letter to the FTC on Thursday. The online-advertising trade group suggested the FTC try a do-over, after opening up the issue for discussion with bloggers and online advertisers…

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As you’ve likely heard by now, the Federal Trade Commission is trying to reign in freebie-grabbing bloggers and graft-happy social media users masquerading as unbiased critics. The agency announced an update to the FTC Act of 1980, the requisite guidelines for consumer endorsements and testimonials. For many, the takeaway has been this: Bloggers Must Disclose Every Single Freebie Sent to Them From Companies–or Pay an $11,000 Fine. Scary.

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The Federal Trade Commission is planning three public discussions, starting in December, devoted to technology and consumer privacy.

According to the FTC, the roundtables will address topics such as social networking, cloud computing, online advertising and mobile marketing, the goal being “to determine how best to protect consumer privacy while supporting beneficial uses of the information and technological innovation.”

Behavioral advertising, in particular, has come under fire by privacy groups. Earlier this month, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Consumers Union and other related organizations called for stronger rules limiting what kinds of personal information are collected by marketers and how long they can hold on them.

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The future of the cash for clunkers program is in doubt, but consumers should remain wary of fraudulent sites that claim to be associated with it.

The Federal Trade Commission has issued a consumer alert noting that only one Web site, Cars.gov, is the official destination for the Car Allowance Rebate System. Other sites, particularly ones that ask for personal information, should be avoided since they might be a front for identity-theft efforts.

“You do not need a voucher and you are not required to sign up or enroll in this program,” says the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, which operates the rebate program, in a frequently asked questions page.

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Patrick Moorhead, vice president of advanced marketing at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), is a prolific blogger and tweeter about issues of concern to the chip maker. One of his biggest pet peeves is how battery life is measured in laptops, a topic that he thinks is going to become very hot.

How hot? Well, Moorhead predicts that if the industry doesn’t come up with better ways to give consumers realistic estimates of battery life, the issue will be forced in one of two other ways: class-action suits will be brought on behalf of consumers, or an agency like the Federal Trade Commission will intervene. (Not that he is aware of either kind of action taking place yet, he hastens to add).

At a briefing Monday in San Francisco, Moorhead pulls out a bunch of advertising circulars from retailers, which include estimates of battery life for laptops that he contends are hopelessly unrealistic.

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When you think of spyware, Sears probably isn’t the first name that comes to mind. But the Federal Trade Commission announced today that the retailer had agreed to settle a complaint alleging it had installed tracking software on visitors’ computers without providing adequate notice.

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A number of Juggle readers are parent-bloggers themselves–and many of you read mom- or dad-blogs regularly. In many cases, parent-bloggers review products, such as diapers, toys and baby gear, and often receive free samples or services from companies hoping to see their wares get real parents’ seal of approval.

But things may be changing in the blogosphere, as the Federal Trade Commission considers whether to impose new rules for parent-bloggers. The FTC is weighing whether these informal endorsements should be considered paid advertisements if the blogger receives any quid pro quo from the manufacturer, either in the form of free goods or money.

The news is making a lot of parent-bloggers nervous. A number of parents have turned to blogging as a way to earn income or get free products during these tough times. But the FTC is concerned that the manufacturer-blogger relationships may not be transparent to readers.

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The last time cookies became a matter of public debate was when the “Sesame Street” character Cookie Monster was accused of encouraging poor eating habits among toddlers. Today’s controversial cookies are the small text files that track where people go online. Web sites do a poor job of explaining how and why this information is used, even as details about our lives are increasingly knowable online. Risks to privacy make this a race between smarter self-regulation on the Web and threatened new regulation by the Federal Trade Commission.

Most privacy advocates understand that advertising pays for the otherwise free Web, but worry that cookies can be used for more than matching advertising to individual interests. Some want a “do not track” approach on the Web, similar to the “do not call” rules that block unwanted marketing phone calls. This sounds attractive but could undercut much of the marketing power of the Web.

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