minilinks for 2008-05-01

• Internet Users Have Expectation of Privacy
  The NJ Supreme Court ruled that people have a reasonable expectation of privacy while online.
  
• Microsoft Helps Police Grab Digital Evidence
  The software giant has provided police with a device that quickly and easily extracts data -- without seizing the computer.
  
• FBI Wants to Move Hunt for Criminals to Internet Backbone
  Jon Stokes unpacks FBI director Robert Mueller's testimony to the House Judiciary Committee, highlighting the Feds' desire to monitor and filter Internet traffic.
  
• NJ Judge Allows Examination of E-Voting Machines
  For the first time, voting rights advocates will have the opportunity to examine the programming of suspect voting machines.
  
• How to Kill/Block an RFID
  Instructions on how to disable unwanted RFID tags.
  
• P2P Throttling and A Net Neutrality Showdown in Canada
  An outcry from small, reseller ISPs brings traffic-shaping and deep packet inspection to the forefront in Canada.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-04-23

• Feds to Collect DNA from Every Person They Arrest
  Anyone arrested by the feds would have their DNA included
  in a massive database.
  
• Chertoff Says Fingerprints Aren't 'Personal Data'
  Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told the
  Canadian press that fingerprints should not be considered
  private.
  
• Domestic Satellite Surveillance Coming Soon
  The Department of Homeland Security is set to begin using a
  new domestic spy program using advanced satellite
  technology.
  
• Warning on Storage of Health Records
  Two leading researchers warn that plans for electronic
  health records from Google and Microsoft pose a threat to
  online privacy.
  
• Alaska Joins Real ID Refuseniks
  The state legislature passed legislation rejecting the
  federal Real ID Act.
  
• Access Denied: Report on Internet Censorship Around the
  World
  A new study looks at Internet filtering practices in dozens
  of countries around the world.
  
• Pirate Bay Launches Uncensored Blogger Service
  The new service promises to provide a platform for free
  speech and unpopular ideas.
  
• Microsoft Proposes New Ad Privacy Structure
  The software giant has put forward five self regulatory
  principals to guide privacy policy for third party
  advertising.
  
• Newspapers Argue for First Amendment Right to Snoop on
  Readers
  A newspaper group claims attempts to limit behavioral
  targeting violate First Amendment principals.
  
• RIAA vs. Homeless Man
  The latest victim of an RIAA lawsuit is a man who lives in
  a homeless shelter.
  
• Six Misconceptions About Orphaned Works
  A blogger dissects the debates and exposes myths about
  Orphan Works legislation.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-04-09

• DoD Collaborating with FBI to Gain Access to Individuals' Data
  The ACLU says the US Military is using the FBI to skirt
  legal restrictions on domestic surveillance.
  
• "Fusion Centers" Compile Data on Individuals
  States are operating their own intelligence centers to
  track citizens and analyze data. (Log-in may be required.)
  
• Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Wiretapping
  ...but were afraid to ask.
  
• The Backstory on Surveillance
  The National Journal tells the story of past wiretapping
  battles that set the stage for today's FISA fights.
  
• Patents vs. Free Speech
  The ACLU has waded into the battles over patent law,
  arguing that patents on abstract ideas violate the First
  Amendment.
  
• Do Lecture Notes Infringe Prof's Copyright?
  A professor argues in court that sales of student notes to
  his classes are infringement.
  
• Filesharing: To Fight or Accommodate?
  Both music and movie industries are looking into ways to
  monetize rather than crack down on filesharing.
  
• Nonprofit Solution to Municipal Wi-Fi?
  Internet Archive founder (and EFF board member) Brewster
  Kahle is bringing free wi-fi to poor communities.
  
• MP3s Stored Online to Remain Private
  A judge ruled that EMI could not gain access to MP3 files
  stored on a music locker service.
  
• Boring Home Wants Off Street View
  Aaron and Christine Boring are suing Google over Street
  View's invasion of their privacy.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-03-28

• NY Times Wiretapping Coverage -- The Inside Story
  An excerpt from NY Times author Eric Lichtblau's new book
  on warrantless wiretapping.
  
• Fee for All -- Music as Service from ISPs
  Warner is developing proposals that would make access to
  music a service charged by ISPs.
  
• Charging Schools Instead of Suing Students
  A new proposal from major labels would charge schools a fee
  to allow students to share music legally.
  
• CBC Uses BitTorrent for Prime Time Release
  A high-resolution version of a series finale was released
  without copy protection over P2P networks for more
  efficient distribution.
  
• DHS Blinks -- New Hampshire Joins Montana in Real ID Victory
  
  Two out of four hold-out states have been receiving
  unrequested extensions on Real ID requirements.
  
• Big City Muni Wi-Fi is Dead, Urban Wireless Isn't
  Plans to blanket cities with free wi-fi aren't panning out
  -- but free urban hotspots are spreading.
  
• Rock Against Telecom Immunity!
  A song for telecom companies that broke the law when they
  handed their customer's data to the NSA without a warrant.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-03-20

• FISA Attacks Fail to Sway CT Representative
  Rep. Joe Courtney has a good video explaining why he
  opposes telecom immunity, despite being attacked on the
  issue.
  
• Republican Opposes Telecom Immunity
  A Republican candidate in North Carolina says he wants
  telephone companies held accountable.
  
• Facebook Expands Privacy Features
  Facebook is making some privacy improvements -- but some
  changes are just theatre.
  
• Craigslist Not Liable for Postings
  A Circuit Court has ruled that Craigslist cannot be held
  liable for discriminatory housing ads posted on its site.
  
• Fingerprinting Foreign Visitors
  Airlines are objecting to a government plan would require
  them to collect fingerprints of each visitor to the United
  States.
  
• "All You Can Eat" iTunes?
  Apple is considering giving customers access to the entire
  iTunes library for a premium.
  
• Google Book Search Gets Better
  Library users can now use Google Book Search's new API to
  get a preview of books in the catalog.
  
• Hollywood Gets Into Spying Game
  MPAA chairman says he wants to work with ISPs to police
  networks and fight copyright infringement.
  
• Indie Labels Bypassing iTunes
  Independent record labels are going straight to the
  consumer, opening their own stores with high-quality audio
  and hard-to-find tracks.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-03-14

• Analysis: Firm Stance on FISA Pays Big for Democrats
  Confronting the President on spying powers turns out to be
  a better strategy than capitulation.
  
• President Weakens Spying Oversight
  The Intelligence Oversight Board has been stripped of much
  of its authority -- reversing reforms of the 70s.
  
• P4P -- New Peer-to-Peer Tech
  Verizon is looking into ways to enable better networks
  rather than impede them.
  
• First Fan-Financed Album to Be Released
  Slicethepie raises money from fans to fund album releases.
  
• Kentucky Lawmaker: Anonymous Posting Should Be Illegal
  Rep. Tim Couch has filed a bill that would make it a crime
  to post anonymously on the Internet.
  
• Pacemakers Vulnerable to RFID Scams?
  Researches have shown that private medical information can
  be extracted from RFID-equipped implants.
  
• Privacy Advocates Raise Concerns Over Google-DoubleClick Deal
  An EU Commission cleared the merger, but privacy concerns
  were not part of the determination.
  
• Humor: Diebold Accidentally Leaks 2008 Results
  The Onion reports that e-voting tallies have been leaked,
  revealing election results in advance.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-03-10

• Net Neutrality: Internet Wrecking Ball?
  Andy Kessler argues that technical fixes won't keep the Internet free.
  
• A Wave of the Watch List, and Speech Disappears
  A Treasury Department blacklist apparently has the power to shut down websites. (login may be required)
  
• International Crypto Law Made Easy
  A Google map that pinpoints the state of crypto law around the world.
  
• Nine Inch Nails Releases New Album on Pirate Bay
  The band's new album is being released in several formats at different prices -- including free.
  
• Teens Ignore CDs
  A new report says almost half of teens bought no CDs in 2007.
  
• The Billboard Liberation Front Strikes Again!
  An AT&T billboard now tells the truth about AT&T's cooperation with the NSA.
  
• Humor: The Downside of Google Earth
  A fictional video describing how a stalker might make use of Google Earth.
  

[Permalink]

Global minilinks

What caught our eye among the world's digital rights news this week:

• Blogger's Rights in Morocco
  Fouad Mourtada is the net user tortured and sentenced to three years jail for putting up a joke Facebook entry of a Moroccan prince. Join the protests on 2PM Saturday in Washington, London, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Montreal, and Madrid.
  
• Lobby Groups Oppose Plans for EU Copyright Extension
  Wikinews interviews EFF's European team, and ORG's Becky Hogge about plans to extend copyright in Europe.
  
• ISP Voluntary / Mandatory Filtering
  Comprehensive list of state-determined censorship systems in the West, by country.
  
• UK Filesharing Law 'Unworkable'
  Experts say human rights, privacy laws and technical hurdles stand against the UK government's plans to force ISPs to spy on their customers for rightsholders.
  
• Australian Judge: Code Trumps Law
  Not if you craft law to work with the realities of code.
  
• Europe Spies on Itself
  A round-up across Europe of how governments spy on their own citizens.
  
• IP Rights in Kosovo
  With independence, comes new IP law: you have until September to re-register your Serbian IP rights in the breakaway state.
  
• End User Licenses Don't End Up Fair
  In the UK, consumer groups are reporting software companies for "obscure, unbalanced and unfair" clauses in their EULAs.
  
• EU Privacy Watchdogs: Search Engines Must Obey EU Rules
  Search engines like Google are in the regulator's crosshairs for flouting Europe's privacy laws.
  
• ISP Filtering Trials Start in Australia
  Technical trials begin for indecency-related filters at the ISP level in Australia. Will privacy and security issues be part of the trial? How about the costs of scaling for new ISP entrants?
  
• World Wide Social Networking
  Which countries use which social networking sites.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-02-25

• Music subscription plan sparks anti-trust investigation
  The Department of Justice thinks Universal's plan to offer
  a music subscription service might be a monopoly.
  
• Three strikes and you're out (of the Internet)
  Filesharers trading unauthorized content may lose Internet
  access in proposals circulated in the UK.
  
• Senator wants to limit NFL copyright restrictions
  Arlen Specter wants an exception for churches for the NFL's
  prohibition on public display of the Super Bowl.
  
• Are social networking sites safe after all?
  A new survey finds social networking sites are safer for
  children than other types of Internet communication.
  
• Court protects blogger's anonymity
  An anonymous blogger accused of defamation does not have to
  reveal his or her identity, a California appeals court ruled.
  
• Facebook -- Can you ever leave?
  Some users report being unable to remove their profiles
  from Facebook. (log-in may be required)
  
• Leave no trace? Not on the Internet.
  A journalist tries to live anonymously for a week and finds
  it may not be possible.
  

[Permalink]

minilinks for 2008-02-13

• Music subscription plan sparks anti-trust investigation
  The Department of Justice thinks Universal's plan to offer
  a music subscription service might be a monopoly.
  
• Three strikes and you're out (of the Internet)
  Filesharers trading unauthorized content may lose Internet
  access in proposals circulated in the UK.
  
• Senator wants to limit NFL copyright restrictions
  Arlen Specter wants an exception for churches for the NFL's
  prohibition on public display of the Super Bowl.
  
• Are social networking sites safe after all?
  A new survey finds social networking sites are safer for
  children than other types of Internet communication.
  
• Court protects blogger's anonymity
  An anonymous blogger accused of defamation does not have to
  reveal his or her identity, a California appeals court
  ruled.
  
• Facebook -- Can you ever leave?
  Some users report being unable to remove their profiles
  from Facebook. (log-in may be required)
  
• Leave no trace? Not on the Internet.
  A journalist tries to live anonymously for a week and finds
  is may not be possible.
  

[Permalink]