Question

Consumers who value their privacy (隐私) can limit what they post on Facebook and adjust settings on sites such as Instagram. But Internet service providers (ISPs) have the best advantage point on what consumers do online, and there’s much less you can do about it. After all, your ISP is the conduit (中转机构) for everything you read, view, or shop for while you’re accessing the web at home.

New rules governing the way ISPs can use consumers’ data were adopted in 2016 and scheduled to go into effect this December. But they were rejected by Congress this spring That leaves the future of broadband (宽带) privacy practices unsettled. Consumers say they want more, not less, regulation of broadband privacy. In a nationally representative survey of 1,008 Americans conducted in early May for the Consumer Reports National Research Center, 80 Percent of respondents told us that ISPs should need to get permission before sharing consumers’ data. Six out of 10 didn’t think ISPs should be allowed to sell or share this information at all. Eighty-five percent of respondents said the data rightfully belongs to them.

Under the recently defeated rules，broadband providers would have faced a new login requirement, forcing them to get permission before using data such as web browsing histories. Opponents of the rules said it was unfair to hold ISPs to stricter standards than Internet companies such as Amazon, Google, and Facebook, which are regulated more loosely.

Going forward, state laws could pick up some of the conflict. By the end of May, more than a dozen states had proposed some laws mentioning the issue. Privacy protection bills were also being discussed in Washington, D. C. But privacy experts don’t expect much from the bills. After all, this is the same Congress that voted to roll back the existing privacy protections.

1.What do the new rules focus on?

A. Keeping the Internet steady.

B. Settling broadband practices.

C. Forbidding ISPs to use consumers’ data.

D. Protecting Internet consumers’ privacy.

2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A. Regulations on ISPs using consumers’ data.

B. A survey of privacy conducted by Congress.

C. Consumers, opinions about broadband privacy.

D. The argument about who owns consumers’ data.

3.What does the underlined part “Opponents of the rules” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A. Broadband providers.    B. Internet companies.

C. Internet consumers.    D. Survey representatives.

4.What can we learn from the text?

A. The future of broadband privacy will be clear.

B. Internet companies rejected the rules together with ISPs.

C. Privacy experts have a negative attitude to the privacy protection bills.

D. Consumers will go on arguing with Congress about the Internet privacy.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.A

4.C

【解析】这篇短文介绍了一则管理互联网服务提供商使用消费者数据方式的新规，以及消费者以及互联网供应商对这一新规的态度和看法。

1.细节理解题。根据第二段第一句“New rules governing the way ISPs can use consumers’ data”可知，新规是保护互联网消费者的隐私。故选D.

2.段落大意题。根据第三段中的“broadband providers would have faced a new login requirement”及下文又介绍反对这项规定的人说的话，可知第三段主要是介绍消费者对宽带隐私的看法。故选C.

3.词义猜测题。根据第三段Opponents of the rules所说的话可知，认为对互联网服务供应商进行比互联网公司更严格的标准是不公平的，推知Opponents of the rules指的是宽带供应商。故选A.

4.细节理解题。根据最后一段中的“But privacy experts don’t expect much from the bills. ”可知，隐私保护专家们对这一隐私保护法案持否定态度。故选C.