Date Posted: June 9, 2000
Update: March 11, 2004 An executable JAR file is now available for users who are having difficulties with the installer.
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1. What is P3P?
The Platform for Privacy Preferences Project (P3P) is a specification from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that enables Web sites to post their privacy practices in a machine-readable format (that is, a format that can by interpreted by user agents, such as Web browsers or proxy servers). P3P user agents can inform users about a site's data collection practices and allow users to either accept or reject data transfer based on their own preferences. This also frees users from having to read the privacy policies at every site they visit.
A Web site publishes its privacy policy in an XML format in accordance with the P3P specification. P3P Policy Editor is a visual tool for creating a privacy policy that conforms to the W3C specification. P3P Policy Editor also creates an HTML-formatted, human-readable version of the policy, which can be used to ensure that the policy is consistent with the organization's stated privacy practices.
For more information about P3P, see the P3P Public Overview at the W3C Web site.
2. Who is this application intended for?
This application is intended for Web site operators and Web content owners. It allows them to take a site's existing privacy policy and convert it to the formal language defined by P3P. This application is not intended for end users to use to examine site privacy policies.
3. How do I process the policy that it generates? Will my Web browser understand it?
There are currently no Web browsers available which support P3P. Check the W3C's P3P implementations page for information on P3P implementations.
4. Where do I send a bug report?
Please post bug reports on the alphaWorks discussion forum. The developers of this application monitor that forum.
5. How do I generate policy reference files?
This application currently doesn't support production of policy reference files. We are considering support for this in the future.
6. Why are only Windows platforms supported?
The application has been tested on AIX, Solaris, and Linux, in addition to various versions of Windows. However, the installation package is only available for Windows. If you're interested in versions for other platforms, let us know on the discussion forum.
7. What was new in the previous update?
- Better installation process
- Better installer that works harder to find an installed Java run-time environment
- Numerous bug fixes
