Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG), and Intel (INTC) seem to act first and consider regulation later. But there can be a price to pay, as Twitter has just learned. The company has settled charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission "that it deceived consumers and put their privacy at risk by failing to safeguard their personal information." The upshot is a consent degree that will last 20 years, ten years of third party security assessment, and the potential for increased public perception of unreliability -- not good when you want people to trust you with their information.