Critics: Net neutrality process corrupted

Fake or automated comments unfairly skewed policymaking, officials say.

As the Federal Communications Commission prepares to dismantle its net neutrality rules for internet providers, a mounting backlash from agency critics is zeroing in on what they say are thousands of fake or automated comments submitted to the FCC that unfairly skewed the policymaking process.

Allegations about anomalies in the record are quickly becoming a central component of a campaign by online activists and some government officials to discredit the FCC’s plan.

“The process the FCC has employed,” wrote New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman this week in a letter to the FCC, “has been corrupted by the fraudulent use of Americans’ identities.”

For the past six months, Schneiderman continued, the New York attorney general’s office has been reviewing the comments filed at the FCC on net neutrality. It found that “hundreds of thousands” of submissions may have impersonated New York residents — a potential violation of state law. But, he said, the FCC has declined to provide further evidence that could help move the investigation forward, such as data logs and other information.

Some consumers have complained that their own names or addresses have been hijacked and used to submit false comments to the FCC that they did not support. Others have pointed to the bizarre appearance of comments submitted by people who are deceased. Public comments play an important role at the FCC, which typically solicits feedback from Americans before it votes to make significant policy changes. The agency didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The comments targeted by Internet activists largely back the FCC’s decision to repeal Obama-era regulations aimed at ensuring all websites are treated equally by internet providers. Consumer groups fear that without the rules, internet providers could begin charging some websites or services more to reach their customers — regular internet users, who may ultimately bear the cost of the new fees. They also say internet providers could artificially speed up services they own or have special relationships with, to the detriment of start-ups and small businesses. Internet providers have promised not to block or slow down content.

But internet providers have also spent significant time and money lobbying for the regulations to be reversed. And some of the public comments, critics say, bear resemblance to industry talking points.

“It was particularly chilling to see these spam comments all in one place, as they are exactly the type of policy arguments and language you expect to see in industry comments on the proposed repeal,” wrote Jeff Kao, a data scientist who published a study of the pro-repeal comments Thursday.