Google and Apple have been questioned in the US Senate over their use of place information in mobile services.
It follows revelations that iPhones and Android gadgets were storing information.
Governments around the world are deliberation either privacy laws offer sufficient insurance to consumers in the light of new services.
Senator Al Franken mentioned people had a "fundamental right" to know what personal information was being stored.
Tuesday's US conference could be used to surprise future privacy laws.
The conference was called by Senator Franken who mentioned he longed for to "strike a balance" between the correct to privacy and the stepping up amounts of personal information existing to considerable corporations.
"When we was flourishing up and people talked about safeguarding their privacy, they talked about safeguarding it from the government," he mentioned in his gap matter to the Privacy Technology and the law subcommittee.
"Now we moreover have a attribute with considerable corporations that are storing increasingly considerable amounts of the information."
"I think that consumers have a essential correct to know what information is being collected, and they should have the correct to confirm if they wish to share it, with whom and when," he said.
He stressed that the indicate of the conference was not to end location-based services from being created.
Apple has faced stepping up investigation after it was suggested that iPhones were storing information which, when used with specific software, could create a minute chart of where a user had been.
In an refurbish to its mobile working system, it has given marked down the amount of information stored and authorised users to spin off place information storage completely.
Guy 'Bud' Tribble, clamp boss of program technology, represented Apple at the conference whilst Google sent along its executive of open policy, Alan Davidson.
Mr Tribble reiterated that Apple did not record information on users but did keep information on the wi-fi hotspots that people had used.
In its testimony, Google mentioned that it gives users "clear observe and control; the set-up routine asks users if they would similar to to enable Google's place service to gather unknown place data".
During the hearing, New York Senator Charles Schumer asked because they authorised apps that helped users prevent military checkpoints for dipsomaniac driving.
Both firms concluded to look at the apps in question.
Location information is rarely profitable to promotion companies, and there are expected to be increasingly personalised advertisements sent to users' smartphones.
Privacy campaigners warn that place information could moreover be used by insurers to set rates formed on the places people revisit - with periodic gym-goers expected to obtain improved deals, for example.
Mobile promotion could be value over $3bn by 2014, according to researcher definite Ovum.
Tuesday's conference was mostly an preparation routine but it could lead to laws restricting the amount of information that firms can access.
Three online privacy bills have been introduced in the US but it is misleading at this theatre which, if any, will make it in to law.
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