The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is looking for businesses to comment on the topic of protecting personal information online.
Companies are invited to respond to an internet-based consultation document, which acts as a new draft code of practice and provides organisations with "a practical and common sense approach" to maintaining people's privacy online.
Included in the guidance is the call for businesses to offer people the right degree of choice and control over their personal information. One way of achieving this is ensuring consumers have the option of erasing such data when a browsing session has ended.
Respondents can comment on the draft code up until March 5th 2010, when the consultation will come to an end.
According to the ICO, the document comes at a time when social networking, e-commerce and e-government take-up is increasing, which highlights the world's "growing dependence on the internet" as a means of conducting both personal and professional business.
Groups such as the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) helped contribute to the ICO consultation paper.
Nick Stringer, head of regulatory affairs at the IAB, said: "The IAB and its members have worked closely with the ICO in producing this consultation document to help businesses understand the collection and use of personal information online."
"The document specifically references the IAB's Good Practice Principles for online behavioural advertising," he adds.
Stringer also argues that there is still work to be done - for example on the issue of how personal data is defined - and says the IAB is looking forward to working alongside the ICO as things develop.
