Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO), perhaps hoping to get the focus off its finances and CEO search, will reduce the amount of time it holds on to user data to three months from just over a year. After that period, Yahoo will “anonymize” user log data within 90 days with limited exceptions for fraud, security and legal obligations. The Sunnyvale, CA-based company is also expanding its privacy policy beyond search log data to include info on pageviews, page clicks, ad views and ad clicks.

SEE ALSO: Yahoo Expands Privacy Controls Across Portal As Regulatory Scrutiny Sharpens

Back in August, with an eye to mollifying Congress and state legislators who were taking a harder look at online privacy and behavioral advertising, Yahoo said it was broadening “opt-out” controls covering targeted ads across its portal. Yahoo offered up the new tools as part of its response to a Congressional inquiry about ad targeting sent to 33 companies, including AOL (NYSE: TWX), Google (NSDQ: GOOG), Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) as well as internet service providers like Cablevision (NYSE: CVC), Cox Communications and Charter Communications (NSDQ: CHTR), from the House Energy and Commerce Committee. In September 2007, Google said it would discard user data after nine months. With a new administration and Congress taking office next month, Yahoo’s move will increase the existing pressure on the other companies to match it on privacy controls. Release