In recent years allegations of misleading life insurance advertising practices by a few insurance agents have been reported widely in the news media. This is a serious concern to the ethical and professional life underwriter because such actions affect the public�s willingness to listen to any insurance producer. This defensive reaction may enable people to protect themselves from bad advice, but it also prevents them from hearing good advice.

Many people feel that they need life insurance, but few people clearly understand life insurance. This combination of need and ignorance creates an opportunity for the unethical to take advantage of the public. As a result, the advertising and marketing practices of the insurance industry are subject to a high and increasingly higher level of regulatory scrutiny.

Protecting policyowners� privacy is also an important obligation of the insurance industry. As an example, the recent problem concerning public knowledge about whether a person has or has not tested positive for HIV infection has made the question of privacy a major issue. Life insurance underwriting practices require prospective insureds to reveal significant amounts of personal medical and financial information about themselves. The proper treatment of this kind of information, and other sensitive personal information, is a legitimate regulatory concern.