For nearly four years, top Democrats and Republicans have attacked the tech industry with accusations of antitrust damage, political bias and criticism of how large online platforms treat privacy and misinformation. Biden himself is one of Big Tech’s most vocal critics of Facebook’s needling over misinformation and political advertising, and calls for the removal of a major legal shield for the industry.
But Harris’ selection as vice president already gives some who work in and around the tech industry cause for optimism. A California senator whose constituency includes Silicon Valley, Harris has experience working on technology issues. Their connections with technology execs include powerful donors as well Amazon (AMZN) general advice David Zapolsky and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman. Tuesday, Facebook (FB) COO Sheryl Sandberg wrote that Harris’ presumptive nomination is “an enormous moment for Black women and girls around the world – and for all of us.”
“She’s a great choice for the tech industry,” said Matt Tanielian, co-founder of Franklin Square Group, a lobbying firm in Washington that represents Call (AAPL), Dropbox (DBX), eBay (EBAY) and others. “Not because I think she’s going to suddenly tech back into the treasure it once was … but she knows the problems really well. She’s not a pushover about any of the hard stuff.”
On perhaps the most pressing issue for the tech industry, Harris also stands in stark contrast to sen. Elizabeth Warren, her rival in the Democratic presidential race and another name on Biden’s list of VP candidates. While Warren advocates for the outbreak of tech giants like Amazon and Google (GOOGL), by asking other presidential candidates to do the same, Harris never endorsed the idea.
“I believe tech companies need to be regulated in a way that we can ensure, and the American consumer can be sure that their privacy is not compromised,” Harris said when the New York Times immediately asked if she thought Amazon , Facebook and Google need to be broken up.
On this particular issue, at least it may not matter who the VP choice is, given the number of ongoing technical antitrust tests. “The exposure to regulation is already very far away” for the biggest tech giants, said Jason Kint, CEO of Digital Content Next, a trading group of publishers who are very critical of Google and Facebook. “And I think that regardless of who the vice presidential candidate is, it will move at a rapid pace.”
Vice presidents may not always have the most direct influence on policy. And other candidates who were nominated, including Warren, could still have an impact if elected to a cabinet role. However, each VP pick sends a public message about how a potential administration can set priorities or approach certain issues. Here are some key areas where tech experts say Harris could play a key role.
Privacy and data protection
Although Harris was not focused on breaking up tech giants, she is widely regarded as an early leader on consumer care issues, several experts said.
Her experience on privacy issues began again during an exciting exchange with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg when he testified before the House of Representatives in 2018. Harris shrugged Zuckerberg to say whether Facebook had deliberately decided not to tell users about Cambridge’s data breach Analytica when the social media giant learned about it.
In 2012, when California’s Attorney General, Harris hammered out an agreement with Apple, Google and other tech platforms that required customers to access the privacy policies of apps before downloading them. Later that year, she sent letters to dozens of app developers warning that they did not comply with California’s privacy policy and that they were fined up to $ 2,500 per violation.
Since then, California has passed one of the most expensive data privacy laws in the nation, but there is still no federal privacy standard. Given Harris’ congressional experience, it could serve as a critical link between the White House and Congress on privacy, said Susan Hintze, a privacy advocate and partner at Hintze Law.
“Many people do not realize that they have built their political careers for the championship of privacy issues against the backdrop of the tech world,” Hintze said. “I suspect as VP that she can continue with this fight, and we can see more privacy initiatives at the federal level.”
Encryption and law enforcement
As a former attorney general and prosecutor, Harris is closely associated with law enforcement, and her record on policing has been deeply scrutinized during the Democratic primary.
For Silicon Valley, this aspect of Harris’ record may represent the largest source of uncertainty. As a senator, Harris supported a package of laws against sexual trafficking, known as SESTA / FOSTA, which was opposed by many in the tech industry because it drained liability protection for online platforms. Biden has previously called for a complete repeal of the same protections, which were set out in section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. It is an open question how a Vice President Harris can influence that agenda, given her previous vote.
Meanwhile, a top priority of the FBI and Justice Department has access to the encrypted communications of criminal suspects, an issue that has caused a rift between Washington and Silicon Valley; technologists argue that giving police special access to read encrypted messages would compromise privacy and security for everyone.
So far, Harris has tried to draw a fine line over the matter. They avoided choosing a site in the 2016 standoff between Apple and the FBI over unlocking the San Bernardino shooter’s encrypted iPhone. But as a potential decision maker in a Biden administration, she may no longer have that luxury.
Harris may be dealing with similar quandaries about other technological issues related to policing. Face recognition, artificial intelligence, drone surveillance – these are all likely to be major issues that Harris may have to wait for a Biden administration.
External work, immigration and good governance
Some experts say it is unlikely that Harris will be so deeply embedded in the specific policy issues and instead may play a larger role on big picture topics such as immigration, intellectual property and access to broadband, which are also important for tech- sector.
These types of issues are closer to the overall task of a potential Biden administration, which will be to continue managing the pandemic’s economic fallout.
“How do we create a vibrant economy, and how do we create social justice in a world of everything at a distance?” said Blair Levin, a former chief of staff at the Federal Communications Commission. “That will probably be a fundamental technical issue in the next administration.”
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