September 30, 2003
Former Attorney General Bashes Librarians on Today Show
On the NBC Today show this morning, former Attorney General Edwin Meese apparently made the following statement in reference to the Patriot Act: "librarians are more interested in pushing p****graphy than fighting terrorism."
The American Library Association (ALA) President Carla Hayden responded as follows: "Similar to our current Attorney General, Mr. Meese chose to malign librarians rather than address the real and substantive concerns of millions of Americans and members of Congress. Whether or not the government is using the expanded powers provided by the USA PATRIOT Act in libraries, we must ask: Should the government have the power to obtain Americans' reading and other personal records without showing probable cause?"
Update on the Do Not Call Registry
From the FTC website today:
"You can still put your number on the national registry at www.donotcall.gov. Pending court action, the FTC cannot enforce the requirement for telemarketers to consult the list. Most telemarketers, however, also are subject to the Federal Communication Commission’s do not call rule, which takes effect October 1, 2003. The FCC has announced that it will enforce its rule. See http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-239219A1.pdf.
OMB to Increase Privacy Requirements for E-Gov Databases
Today the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a press release, Bush Administration Ramps-Up Federal E-Government Requirements, to accompany this OMB Guidance for Implementing the Privacy Provisions of the E-Government Act of 2002.
"The Administration is committed to protecting the privacy of the American people. This guidance document addresses privacy protections when Americans interact with their government. The guidance directs agencies to conduct reviews of how information about individuals is handled within their agency when they use information technology (IT) to collect new information, or when agencies develop or buy new IT systems to handle collections of personally identifiable information. Agencies are also directed to describe how the government handles information that individuals provide electronically, so that the American public has assurances that personal information is protected."
More Opposition to CAPPS II
Barr Submits Formal Objections to Passenger Profiling System:
"Former Congressman Bob Barr today filed a formal objection to the government's proposed passenger profiling system, commonly known by its acronym, "CAPPS II" (Computer Assisted Passenger Pre-screening System)...Barr...submitted six pages of reasons why the proposed system violated provisions of the U.S. Constitution, including citizens' right to privacy."
"The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), along with PrivacyActivism, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, C.A.S.P.I.A.N., and others, today submitted formal comments to the Privacy Office of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, urging it to stop development of a proposed airline passenger screening program administered by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). [
Link]
Summaries of Selected DARPA Research Programs
DARPA Fact File: Short summaries of selected DARPA programs, intended as a ready reference for those interested in DARPA’s research portfolio, 8/15/03.
National Security Secrets
From Steven Aftergood at the Project on Government Secrecy: "The text of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982, which prohibits the identification of "covert agents," is available here."
From Section 421: "Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both."
Google Beta Testing Feature to Monitor Frequent Users
From the Google Frequent Searchers help page:
"Do you search with Google a hundred times a day? Do you reach for Google before the phonebook, the dictionary or the newspaper? Do you think, just maybe, you're a Google frequent searcher? Now you can know for sure. The Google search counter is accurate, easy to administer and precisely calibrated for your computing environment. It provides clear and instantaneous results showing exactly how often you use Google. For information on how the search counter works, read on."
September 29, 2003
Survey on Freedom of Information Laws Around the World
Updated September 28, the freedominfo.org Global Survey - Freedom of Information and Access to Government Records Around the World (pdf, 90 pages).
"David Banisar of freedominfo.org provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive summary of the state of access to information in more than 50 countries, examining existing laws and prevailing practice, with links to relevant sites in each country."
Update on CAPPS II and Collection of "Real" Passenger Data
According to Admiral James M. Loy, Administrator, Transportation Security Administration (TSA), commenting on CAPPS II at briefing in Washington, D.C. on September 26, "We do need to get on with real testing of real data..."
From dc.internet.com, further information on Loy's comments, which indicate that "if no airlines voluntarily provide data for a 180-day testing period of the Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) scheduled for later this year, he (Loy) will issue a security directive mandating the airlines provide the information."
Released today by TSA, this CAPPS II Fact Sheet, which states in part, "CAPPS II will authenticate the identity of passengers by checking the passenger name record - including full name, home address, telephone number and date of birth - against commercial databases. In addition, a risk assessment will be done by checking passenger names against government databases. For the vast majority of passengers, this information will be discarded within a few days of the successful completion of the itinerary."
See also this Notice of status of system of records; Interim final notice; Request for further comments on CAPPS II, from the Federal Register, August 1, 2003. Public comments are due by September 30, and the TSA notice above indicates receipt of more than 8,000 comments.
Do Not Call Authorization Bill Signed by President
This afternoon the President signed a bill (H.R. 3161, P.L. 108-82) that "overrules the objection of a judge in Oklahoma City who said the FTC did not have the proper authority to oversee the list." See my posting from yesterday on the challenges that continue to face the Do Not Call registry here.
See the President's statement here.
P2P File Sharing Appeal Attracts Diverse Group of Supporters
From the Electronic Frontier Foundation, this website on MGM v. Grokster:
"EFF is defending StreamCast Networks, the company behind the Morpheus P2P software, in this important lawsuit pending in federal court in Los Angeles. Twenty-eight of the world's largest entertainment companies brought this lawsuit against the makers of the Morpheus, Grokster, and Kazaa software products, aiming to set a precedent to use against other technology companies (P2P and otherwise)."
The site provides links to the full-text of the Ninth Circuit Appeal Documents and the District Court Documents.
Compilation of Library-Related Resources on Patriot Act
Via the DC Chapter of the Special Libraries Association website, this link to a compilation of Patriot Act commentaries, news and journal articles, and postings to discussion groups, from a range of sources that include the New York Times, USA Today, PBS, LLRX.com, and librarian.net, a website which was prominently cited in the print version of yesterday's New York Times magazine.
New Blog on Verifiable Voting Technology
From Warren Slocum, Chief Elections Officer & Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, San Mateo County, California, a link to his new blog, Election Central, "The Web's 1st Blog on Verified Voting, Election Reform & Democracy." [via Politechbot.com]
From the EFF, see also Flawed E-Voting Standard Sent Back to Drawing Board
Mixed Message in Commentary on Libraries and Patriot Act
From the New York Times Magazine, 9/28/03: Is it possible that librarians could be the biggest threat to the Patriot Act?
September 26, 2003
Worldwide Survey of E-Politics
PoliticsOnline announced the results of its global survey to identify the 25 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics. From the press release, what follows is a selection of the honorees:
BBC News and iCan team - The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) website is arguably the leading global authority in political news.
Dean for America and Joe Trippi - Presidential Democratic Candidate Howard Dean has used the power of the internet to mobilize supporters and secure online donations in a way that has never been done in politics.
Jim Orr, www.WhiteHouse.gov - Orr and his staff at the White House are changing the way citizens can learn of White House policy directly from the source unfiltered by any media.
The Pew Charitable Trusts and Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet
Library Associations Back P2P Companies in Upcoming Case
According to Declan McCullagh, the Amerian Library Association (ALA) planned to file an amicus brief today (9th Circuit Court of Appeals), contending that file sharing companies Streamcast Networks and Grokster should not be forced to close down. The ALA was joined by the Association of Research Libraries, the American Association of Law Libraries, the Medical Library Association and the Special Libraries Association.
A copy of the brief filed by the library associations, on behalf of the defendants, in MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd., is available, in pdf, via the EFF site, here.
DOD Appropriations Eliminates Funding for TIA
From the House Conference Report (108-283), on H.R. 2658 (263 pages, pdf):
Sec. 8131. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available in this or any other Act may be obligated for the Terrorism Information Awareness Program: Provided, That this limitation shall not apply to the program hereby authorized for Processing, analysis, and collaboration tools for counterterrorism foreign intelligence, as described in the Classified Annex accompanying the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2004, for which funds are expressly provided in the National Foreign Intelligence Program for counterterrorism foreign intelligence purposes.
(b) None of the funds provided for Processing, analysis, and collaboration tools for counterterrorism foreign intelligence shall be available for deployment or
implementation except for:
(1) lawful military operations of the United States conducted outside the United States; or
(2) lawful foreign intelligence activities conducted wholly overseas, or wholly against non-United States citizens.
(c) In this section, the term "Terrorism Information Awareness Program'' means the program known either as Terrorism Information Awareness or Total Information Awareness, or any successor program, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or any other Department or element of the Federal Government, including the individual components of such Program developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Deployment of CAPPS II Delayed by Congress
As part of the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations bill, H.R. 2555, Sec. 519, Congress is blocking the implementation of CAPPS II pending a review (to be completed by February 15, 2004), by the GAO, of the system's privacy standards.
Sec. 519, Research, Development, Acquisition, and Operations, states in part: "None of the funds provided by this or previous appropriations Acts may be obligated for deployment or implementation, on other than a test basis, of the Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) plans to utilize to screen aviation passengers, until the General Accounting Office has reported to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives that--
(1) a system of due process exists whereby aviation passengers determined to pose a threat and either delayed or prohibited from boarding their scheduled flights by the TSA may appeal such decision and correct erroneous information contained in CAPPS II;
(2) the underlying error rate of the government and private data bases that will be used both to establish identity and assign a risk level to a passenger will not produce a large number of false positives that will result in a significant number of passengers being treated mistakenly or security resources being diverted;
(3) the TSA has stress-tested and demonstrated the efficacy and accuracy of all search tools in CAPPS II and has demonstrated that CAPPS II can make an accurate predictive assessment of those passengers who may constitute a threat to aviation;
(4) the Secretary of Homeland Security has established an internal oversight board to monitor the manner in which CAPPS II is being developed and prepared;
(5) the TSA has built in sufficient operational safeguards to reduce the opportunities for abuse;
(6) substantial security measures are in place to protect CAPPS II from unauthorized access by hackers or other intruders;
(7) the TSA has adopted policies establishing effective oversight of the use and operation of the system; and
(8) there are no specific privacy concerns with the technological architecture of the system."
Congress demands study of CAPPS II
Congress Puts Brakes on CAPPS II
New Legislation to Repeal Portions of Patriot Act
Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH) issued a press release on his introduction of a bill (H.R. 3171) to repeal sections of the Patriot Act that authorize violations of civil liberties.
"The Benjamin Franklin True Patriot Act repeals sections of the USA PATRIOT Act that authorize sneak and peak searches, warrentless library, medical, and financial record searches, and the detention and deportation of non-citizens without meaningful judicial review. Beyond the PATRIOT Act the bill also cements the fundamental right of attorney-client privilege and restores transparency in the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security by revoking FOIA secrecy orders, along with other important provisions."
September 25, 2003
Roller Coaster Ride for Do Not Call Registry
The FTC's National Do Not Call Registry has been the focus of law and legislation this week. On September 23, the registry was blocked by a court order, and on September 25, the House and Senate, exhibiting unusal unanimity and alacrity, authorized the agency's creation of the registry. But by the evening of September 25, the registry's future was back in doubt as Judge Edward Nottingham, U.S. District Court, District of Colorado, issued a memorandum opinion and order, Mainstream Marketing Services, Inc. v. Federal Trade Commission, finding that the registry violated the First Amendment (specifically "commercial speech.")
From the FTC, What's the Status of the National Do Not Call Registry?
According to FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris, "We will seek every recourse to give American consumers a choice to stop unwanted telemarketing calls. [
Link]
the latest news on this issue from Reuters: "The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver denied a request by telemarketers to halt the federal government's "do not call" list and said it would likely rule in favor of the measure when it soon hears the case."
Defendant Federal Trade Commission's Notice of Appeal;
Defendant Federal Trade Commission's Motion for an Emergency Stay Pending Appeal; Defendant's Memorandum of Points and Authorities in Support of It's Motion for an Emergency Stay Pending Appeal.
Passenger Record Info in Wake of JetBlue
Several resources of note for those interested in the government's collection and use of airline passenger itineraries and associated personal data:
The ACLU has posted an online FOIA request for use by passengers seeking to determine whether data collected by JetBlue is now part of the DOD's TSA database.
From The Practical Nomad, a range of web resources on the Passenger Name Record (PNR) databases maintained by airlines, whose content comprises the core of the TSA's CAPPS II system. This site is frequently updated.
Museum and Library Services Act of 2003 Signed Today By President Bush
H.R. 13, P.L. 108- 81, the Museum and Library Services Act of 2003 (Sept. 25, 2003; 117 Stat. 991; 15 pages).
Annual Best Law Office Website Contest
Law Office Computing magazine announced the winners of the competition for the best websites, large and small firms. Thanks to Amy Campbell, I Want My BlogTV, for posting the information, which is as follows:
Winner, large firm: Jones Day
Winner, small firm: Zupkus & Angell
JetBlue's CEO Issues Apology of Sorts to Customers
On September 23, JetBlue CEO David Neeleman posted a statement on the company's website defending the release of passenger data as a "well-intentioned attempt to assist the Department of Defense in a national security matter." Although admitting the transfer of information was a mistake which will not happen again, Neeleman deflected the criticism swirling around this issue.
New Microsoft Office 2003
From the review:
"E-mail fans (or slaves) will be delighted to learn that Microsoft Outlook has received a sensational and far-reaching overhaul. But among the big three - Word, Excel and PowerPoint - you'll find only a new, blue color scheme and a few other choice changes."
September 24, 2003
U.S. Government Manual 2003-2004
GPO provides access to The U.S. Government Manual 2003-2004 via either a key word search or through a browse feature (choose between viewing content in text of pdf), to access data organized into the following topics: Legislative Branch, Judicial Branch, Executive Branch, Executive Agencies, Independent Establishments and Gov't Corporations, Quasi-Official Agencies, Appendices and Changes.
New GAO Report on E-Gov Initiatives
Electronic Government: Progress and Challenges in Implementing the Office of Personnel Management's Initiatives, by Linda D. Koontz, director, information management, before the Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations, and the Census, House Committee on Government Reform. GAO-03-1169T, September 23. Highlights.
Network Solutions Settles With FTC On Deceptive Marketing Charges
False Solicitations Allegedly Duped Consumers to Transfer Domain Name:
FTC v. Network Solutions, Inc., doing business as VeriSign Registrar (Civil Action No.: 03 1907), U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Stipulated Final Order for Permanent Injunction.
Extensive Study on ID Theft to Be Released
From the press release on a new report to be issued September 25 by ID Analytics, titled National Report on Identity Fraud. "The year-long research project leading up to this report analyzed more than 200 million records, including valid and fraudulent consumer applications for credit, debit and new accounts, together with the largest collection of cross industry known frauds to date."
The Executive Summary for the report states:
"ID Analytics has found that the problem of identity theft and related fraud is larger, more pervasive and much harder to stop than even the experts realize. What's more, while consumers are indeed victimized by identity theft, the majority of dollars lost stem from identity fraud, where the applicant's identity is fraudulently constructed and does not belong to an actual consumer."
Court Blocks FTC's Do Not Call Registry
Lee R. West, Senior United States District Judge, Western District of Oklahoma, found in favor of U.S. Security, et al., in determining that the Federal Trade Commission did not "have the authority to promulgate a national do not call registry." The text of the order, issued September 23, is available here, courtesy of EPIC, in pdf.
The National Do Not Call Registry has already sign-up 50 million consumers.
The Direct Marketing Association's statement on the decision.
Statement of FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris..."This decision is clearly incorrect. We will seek every recourse to give American consumers a choice to stop unwanted telemarketing calls."
California Anti-Spam Law Sets Nationwide Standard
From Spam Laws, the text of
California Business and Professions Code, Division 7, Part 3, Chapter 1, Article 1.8. , Restrictions On Unsolicited Commercial E-mail Advertisers (added by S.B. 186, approved September 23, 2003), and signed by Gov. Gray Davis yesterday, effective January 1, 2004.
California law will try to banish e-mail spam
California spam law may face court challenge
Hearing on Proposed Database Misappropriation Bill
The House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property Committee on the Judiciary, Joint Hearing with the Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Oversight, Hearing on the Discussion Draft, H.R. ____, The Database and Collections of Information Misappropriation Act of 2003, held Tuesday, September 23, 2003:
Witness List; Testimony of - David Carson, Thomas Donohue, Keith Kupferschmid, William
Wulf
See also this ComputerWorld article, Congress questions database protection proposal
September 23, 2003
California First State to Protect Driver's Privacy
AB 213 was signed by California Gov. Gray Davis on September 22.
This bill would require a manufacturer of a new motor vehicle sold or leased in this state that is equipped with one or more recording devices, commonly referred to as "event data recorders (EDR)" or "sensing and diagnostic modules (SDM)," to disclose that fact in the owner's manual for the vehicle. The bill would prohibit specified data that is recorded on a recording device from being downloaded or otherwise retrieved by a person other than the registered owner of the motor vehicle, except under specified circumstances. The bill would also require a subscription service agreement to disclose that specified information may be recorded or transmitted as part of the subscription service. [
Link]
Google Labs Tests Search by Location
From PCWorld, news of the launch, in beta, of Google's Search by Location service, which "helps you focus your search on a specific geographic location." Users may indicate search terms, along with an address (US only), city & state, or zip code. The Google FAQ page is here.
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against JetBlue
From The Salt Lake Tribune:
"A group of JetBlue Airways passengers, incensed that the low-fare airline gave their personal information to a defense contractor, on Monday filed a class action lawsuit in Utah on behalf of 5 million passengers." [thanks to Toby Brown]
See also my posting from yesterday which included the link to the full-text of the defense contractor's report, Homeland Security -- Airline Passenger Risk Assessment, and this other posting from the same day which referenced related documents.
GAO Report on Homeland Security Info Sharing
Homeland Security: Information Sharing Responsibilities, Challenges, and Key Management Issues, by Robert F. Dacey, before a joint hearing of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Science, and Research and Development and the Subcommittee on Infrastructure and Border Security, House Select Committee on Homeland Security. GAO-03-1165T, September 17. Highlights.
Court Rules Recall Vote May Proceed
From FindLaw, the text of today's decision, Southwest Voter Registration Ed. Project v. Shelly (pdf).
Report on Presidential Campaign Finance Spending
The Campaign Finance Institute's Task Force On Presidential Nomination Financing issued a press release on its new report, Participation, Competition, Engagement Reviving And Improving Public Funding For Presidential Nomination Politics.
VeriSign's Controversial Site Finder Service
The Controversy Over New Web Typo Site continues as ICANN issued an Advisory Concerning VeriSign's Deployment of DNS Wildcard Service, requesting that pending the organization's review and publication of a report, VeriSign suspend this service. In addition to ICANN's action, last Friday Popular Enterprises, parent of search engine Nester.com, filed an unfair trade practices lawsuit in Florida, and domain registrar Go Daddy also filed a lawsuit the same day, in Arizona. VeriSign's news release dated today maintains that Site Finder is a "useful tool" that "has been visited over 65 million times by Internet users" since its introduction on September 15.
September 22, 2003
OCLC Sues NYC Hotel Over Classification System
AP reported yesterday that the non-profit Online Computer Library Center, Incorporated (OCLC) has filed a trademark infringement complaint (in the Southern District Court, District of Ohio, Eastern Division), against the Library Hotel, located in Manhattan. At issue is the hotel's use of the Dewey Decimal Classification system (owned by OCLC) as a theme to identify its rooms by specific categories. [thank you Roger!]
See also OCLC's new release, OCLC takes legal action to protect Dewey Decimal Classification® (DDC®) trademark, here.
An informative posting on this case is available from the blog Infringing Actions.
The Library Concept, from the hotel's website, states the following: "The Library Hotel in New York City is the first hotel ever to offer its guest over 6,000 volumes organized throughout the hotel by the DDC. Each of the 10 guestrooms floors honors one of the 10 categories of the DDC and each of the 60 rooms is uniquely adorned with a collection of books and art exploring a distinctive topic within the category or floor it belongs to."
JetBlue Passenger Profiles Controversy Remains in Spotlight
As a follow-up to my previous posting, Airline Passenger Profiling Study Goes Awry, on September 20 the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a complaint with the FTC, stating:
"JetBlue Airways Corporation and Acxiom Corporation have engaged in deceptive trade practices affecting commerce by disclosing consumer personal information to Torch Concepts Inc., an information mining company with its principal place of business in Huntsville, Alabama, in violation of 15 U.S.C. § 45(a)(1)."
"EPIC also filed expedited Freedom of Information Act requests with several federal agencies."
See also this press release, issued at 6:26pm today by JetBlue, "JetBlue Retains Deloitte & Touche to Assist the Airline in Its Analysis of Its Privacy Policy; Airline Confirms it will Not be a Test Airline for CAPPS II."
UK Criminalizes Spam
According to a BBC News article from September 18: "The UK has made spam a criminal offence to try to stop the flood of unsolicited messages. Under the new law, spammers could be fined £5,000 in a magistrates court or an unlimited penalty from a jury." This law comes via the Minister of State for Energy, e-Commerce and Postal Services, Stephen Timms.
See also the UK All Party Parliamentary Internet Group, which posted documentation on a recent Spam Summit, as well as on a upcoming joint UK/US meeting on the issue to be held in October in Washington, D.C.
Exec. Order on Declassifying National Security Info Effective Today
Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, as amended by Executive Order 13292 (March 28, 2003), takes effect today.
"This order prescribes a uniform system for classifying, safeguarding, and declassifying national security information, including information relating to defense against transnational terrorism. Our democratic principles require that the American people be informed of the activities of their Government. Also, our Nation's progress depends on the free flow of information. Nevertheless, throughout our history, the national defense has required that certain information be maintained in confidence in order to protect our citizens, our democratic institutions, our homeland security, and our interactions with foreign nations. Protecting information critical to our Nation's security remains a priority.
See also my April 14 posting on this executive order which provides additional explanatory resources.
New Report on Post 9/11 Civil Liberties
From the Lawyer's Committee on Human Rights, a new report: Assessing the New Normal: Liberty and Security for the Post-September 11 United States, September 2003:
Link to the full report, 144 pages, pdf
Link to Introduction and Executive Summary
Link to report by chapter (there are 5 chapters): Chapter One, Open Government; Chapter Two, Personal Privacy; Chapter Three, Immigrants, Refugees and Minorities; Chapter Four, Unclassified Detainees; and Chapter Five, The United States and International Human Rights.
Perspective on the World of Music File Sharing
From the Sunday New York Times Magazine, Turn On. Tune In. Download.
"The fact is, most participants do a lot more taking than ''sharing''; one study found that nearly half the songs accessible through major peer-to-peer networks are contributed by just 1 percent of users, and nearly 70 percent of downloaders do not share a thing. One of the more revelatory aspects of the record industry's strategy is that it's picking targets based less on how much music they've downloaded than on how much they are offering up to the world."
Airline Passenger Profiling Study Goes Awry
On September 18, Wired reported that JetBlue Airways had shared 5 million passenger itineraries with a government contractor who in turn enhanced the dataset with information including associated social security numbers and income demographics, which then became part of a study, Homeland Security -- Airline Passenger Risk Assessment. The airline's chief executive subsequently sent an email to an undisclosed number of passengers who complained, apologizing for this breach of privacy.
September 19, 2003
CA Appeals Court to Review Postponement of Recall Vote
The California electoral recall postponement opinion of September 15 will be reviewed according to this Order of the U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, filed September 19.
Why the Eleven-Judge Ninth Circuit Panel Should Affirm The Original Panel Decision to Postpone the California Recall[
Link]
September 18, 2003
EU Airline Passenger Data Resolution
25th International Conference of Data Protection & Privacy Commissioners Sydney, 12 September 2003 - Resolution concerning the Transfer of Passengers’ Data.
See also EU challenges U.S. passenger data plan
Prestige Ranking of Law Firms
Vault Survey of Top 100 Law Firms, compiled from surveys returned by 11,908 associates from more than 100 top firms. See also the survey Rankings Methodology. "An extended PDF excerpt and table of contents" is available for download here.
Ashcroft Relents on Releasing Info On Library Records
Report on accessing library records to be open:
"Countering charges that the FBI is snooping into America's reading habits, Attorney General John Ashcroft said yesterday that he would declassify a report on how often the agency has sought information from public libraries under the USA Patriot Act. The move came after a sharp exchange this week between Ashcroft and Carla D. Hayden, newly installed president of the American Library Association and director of Baltimore's Enoch Pratt Free Library."
September 17, 2003
Hurricane Isabel May Prevent Postings on 9/18
Sorry to say the big storm is headed my way, so I may actually have to unplug the computers and peripherals, oh my! Hope to be back soon though.
Administration Plans Database of Terrorists
From the White House news release, dated September 16:
"Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, Secretary of State Colin Powell, FBI Director Robert Mueller and Director of Central Intelligence George Tenet today announced the establishment of the Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) to consolidate terrorist watchlists and provide 24/7 operational support for thousands of federal screeners across the country and around the world."
DHS Fact Sheet: The Terrorist Screening Center
Memorandum of Understanding on the Integration and Use of Screening Information to Protect Against Terrorism
House Votes to Continue Internet Tax Moratorium
H.R. 49, to permanently extend the moratorium enacted by the Internet Tax Freedom Act, passed the House by voice vote today. For related information, see this Internetnews.com article.
Law Firm Technology Survey
The Eighth Annual AmLaw Tech Survey, September 2003. Survey results were compiled from responses provided by 137 law firms, and address the following categories: document management, docketing & calendaring, spam defense, litigation support, and electronic evidence vendors. Additional information on expenditures related to hardware, software and IT related personnel is provided in another survey titled The Basics. Note that the average law firm technology budget for 2003 is almost $9 million. See also this article from which the survey results are linked: The Client Comes First.
Supreme Court Review Sought in Cheney Energy Task Force Case
Cheney Wants Supreme Court Review on Energy Case:
"Last week, the appeals court refused to reconsider its previous ruling against Cheney, leaving him with the option of appealing to the Supreme Court or complying with a lower court order to release information about his task force's contacts with the energy industry while drafting policy in 2001."
Follow-Up To Ashcroft's Comments on Librarians and Patriot Act
Additional links related to yesterday's New York Times article:
The text of the Prepared Remarks of Attorney General John Ashcroft, "The Proven Tactics in the Fight against Crime" Washington, D.C., September 15, 2003. He uses the word hysteria six times.
Letter to the Editor, New York Times, September 17, from Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT): Ashcroft vs. Librarians
By the way, the Library Journal named Rep. Bernie Sanders Politician of the Year 2003 (reg. req'd).
New Bill on Digital Rights Management
On September 16, Sen. Sam Brownback introduced the Consumers, Schools, and Libraries Digital Rights Management Act of 2003.
From his press release: "This legislation responds directly to ongoing litigation between the Recording Industry Association of America and Internet service providers Verizon and SBC Communications. This litigation has opened wide all identifying information an ISP maintains on its subscribers, effectively requiring ISPs to make that information available to any party simply requesting the information. The legislation also creates certain minimal protections for consumers legally interacting with digital media products protected by new digital rights management technologies."
The Senator's September 17 press release, "Brownback Chairs Hearing on Digital Rights Management."
A link to the currently available testimony from the hearing, Consumer Privacy and Government Technology Mandates in the Digital Media Marketplace.
National Archives Collection of Historic Documents Once Again Available
"The marble rotunda at the National Archives will reopen tomorrow after two years of renovations designed to make the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence more accessible to visitors and less obscured by distance, awkward angles and green-tinted glass." [Link]
September 16, 2003
Report on Privacy and the Workplace
From the October 2003 issue of Wired Magazine: Ranking Privacy at Work. Of the top-tier publicly traded companies reviewed, IBM, Ford and HP set the highest standards for employee privacy, while Eli Lilly, The New York Times and Wal-Mart are at the other end of the spectrum.
Consumers Union Publishes Guide to Thwart ID Theft
The October 2003 issue of Consumer Reports has two free resources on their corresponding website to assist consumers in combatting ID theft:
Stop thieves from stealing you
What you can do to avoid identity theft
In addition, Consumers Union is also sponsoring a website on financial privacy, at www.financialprivacynow.org
Controversy Over New Web Typo Site
Yesterday came news that VeriSign had launched a new service that redirects users who mistype urls of websites (apparently at the rate of 20 million times per day) to Site Finder, which in turn markets the availability of these mistyped .com or .net domains. A Slashdot posting provided this link to a pdf document on Site Finder from Verisign, which includes a description of the service and its implementation, along with associated guidelines and protocols. Today's Washington Post carries and AP report that "The Internet Software Consortium, the nonprofit organization that develops BIND software for Internet domain name directories, is writing an "urgent patch" for Internet service providers and others who want to block customers from" being routed to Site Finder.
Library Net Filtering Not Implemented Comprehensively
"A new Florida State University Institute on Information study has found that only about half of the libraries surveyed have filters on even one computer." [Link]
E-Gov Website User Survey Indicates Overall Satisfaction
User satisfaction with federal e-government efforts, measured in a recent survey of 22 websites, indicates that many users rate them competitively with the best of the commercial sites. The survey, American Customer Satisfaction Index, E-Government Satisfaction Index, available free in pdf, but requiring registration to download, is a joint effort of the University of Michigan Business School and ForeSee Results Inc. Top rated sites include Firstgov.gov, The National Women's Health Information Center and sites produced by NASA.
Ashcroft, Libraries and the Patriot Act
From today's New York Times: Ashcroft Mocks Librarians and Others Who Oppose Parts of Counterterrorism Law:
"Attorney General John Ashcroft today accused the country's biggest library association and other critics of fueling "baseless hysteria" about the government's ability to pry into the public's reading habits."
American Library Association responds to Attorney General remarks on librarians and USA PATRIOT Act: A statement by ALA President Carla Hayden
Major ISP Maintains Customer Privacy Amidst File Sharing Lawsuits
The New York Times spotlighted ISP SBC Communications' refusal to join its competitors in providing customer information in response to the recent avalance of recording industry subpoenas issued to those accused of downloading and sharing music files.
September 15, 2003
GAO Recommends Measures for Driver Licensing Verification of Social Security Numbers
Social Security Numbers: Improved SSN Verification and Exchange of States' Driver Records Would Enhance Identity Verification. GAO-03-920, September 15. Highlights.
New GAO Report on FOIA Released Today
Freedom of Information Act: Agency Views on Changes Resulting from New Administration Policy. GAO-03-981, September 3. Highlights.
FOIA Rules Not Seen Affecting Information
Cornell Law Library Launches Newly Designed Site
From Claire M. Germain, Edward Cornell Law Librarian & Professor of Law, Cornell Law School, this information about the library's newly designed website:
"The Law Library Web Team studied dozens of web sites and solicited input from students before embarking on this major project to ensure that the site was designed from a student's point of view. After months of hard work, the team produced pages with an intuitive interface and succinct explanatory annotations. The new law library website showcases the law faculty's scholarship, as well as the law librarians' information expertise, and provides students with the latest legal and multidisciplinary research tools."
9th Circuit Orders Delay for California Recall Vote
The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ordered a halt to the recall election of California Gov. Gray Davis, scheduled for October 7. The court cited the fact that "fourty-four percent of the electorate will be forced to use a voting system so flawed that the Secretary of State has officially deemed it 'unacceptable' and banned its use in all future elections."
New Gov't/Private Partnership to Combat Cybercrime
The press release from the new agency, US-CERT states in part:
"The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in conjunction with Carnegie Mellon University, is pleased to announce the creation of the US Computer Emergency Response Team (US-CERT). The US-CERT will be a partnership between the National Cyber Security Division (NCSD) and Carnegie Mellon's Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-CC). The US-CERT will work with the NCSD to prevent and mitigate cyber attacks and reduce cyber vulnerabilities. This public/private initiative is designed to utilize CERT-CC's capabilities to help accelerate the nation's cyber response to Internet speed."
National Security Archives Posts Declassified Docs on Taliban
On September 11, the National Security Archive at George Washington University "posted on the Web a new collection of recently declassified U.S. documents covering the controversial rise to power of Osama bin Laden's former hosts in Afghanistan, the Taliban. This murky history has particular relevance today, as the Taliban fighters regroup in Afghanistan, and key Taliban leaders remain at large." There are 32 sets of documents in pdf, obtained via the Freedom of Information Act, and they may be accessed via this link.
New Regs Go Into Effect to Process New Bank Account Applicants
On April 30, 2003 the Department of the Treasury issued final regs on Implementing Customer Identity Verification Requirements under Section 326 of the USA PATRIOT Act. This Fact Sheet provides details about the Customer Identification Program (CIP), effective October 1, 2003, which will require that financial institutions:
Collect identifying information about customers opening an account
Verify that the customers are who they say they are
Maintain records of the information used to verify their identity
Determine whether the customer appears on any list of suspected terrorists or terrorist organizations
For more information on these regs, ComplianceHeadquarters.com provides a useful guide, How to Get From KYC (Know Your Customer) to CIP (Customer Identification Program), as well as other related resources.
New Portal of FOI Docs from Australia and Asia-Pacific
From the independent, free World Legal information Institute, a new one-stop searchable database resource on privacy and FOI resources, the Privacy & FOI Law Project. Full-text and keyword searching are available for content from Australia, New Zealand, Nova Scotia, and the Asia-Pacific.
September 11 Digital Archive
The September 11 Digital Archive "uses electronic media to collect, preserve and present the history of the September 11, 2001 attacks." See my previous related posting here.
USPTO Proposed Rule to Create Market-Driven IP System
From the USPTO:
Changes To Support Implementation of the United States Patent and Trademark Office 21st Century Strategic Plan (Notice of Proposed Rule Making) (12 Sep 2003)
LegalTech NYC
Anyone attending LegalTech in New York September 16-17, please feel free to contact me if you are interested in sharing information about, and resources from, the conference. Thank you.
ALA Receives Legal Guidance on Implementation of Internet Filtering
Implementation Issues Surrounding the Children's Internet Protection Act, August 29, 2003.
New Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Guide Online
From the The Berkman Center for Internet & Society:
"UDRP (Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy) Opinion Guide summarizes opinions of the UDRP panelists on various issues. In addition to questions about procedures, the Guide looks at elements necessary to establish trademark rights, what activities constitute "bad faith" and the nature of legltimate interests. The UDRP Opinion Guide has a Table of Contents followed by the text which will be in chapter, title, and section order."
Redesigned Denver Post Introduces 6 New Blogs
Along with a new design and website name, the Denver Post, now called Denverpost.com, announced the launch of six topical blogs, under the title "Bloghouse."
September 13, 2003
New LC Database of Declassified Docs
From Secrecy News:
"The Library of Congress has recently acquired a new database of declassified documents that is available to members of the public who use the Library in Washington, DC, though it cannot be remotely accessed. The Declassified Documents Reference System, which was purchased from The Gale Group, "provides full-text access to over 500,000 pages of previously classified government documents."
Covering major post-World War II era international events from the Cold War to the Vietnam War and beyond, this source enables users to locate a selection of U.S. government documents from the Central Intelligence Agency, the State Department, the Department of Defense, the National Security Council, the White House, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as many other government agencies. The documents range in size and scope from telegrams, correspondence, and unevaluated field reports, to lengthy background studies and detailed minutes of cabinet-level meetings."
September 12, 2003
Beta Technology Disables Camera Phones to Protect Privacy
UK firm Iceberg Systems is beta testing a new technology, Safe Haven™, that identifies the use of portable devices with imaging capabilities, and disables this feature within a specified area. Interest in this technology is driven by estimates that there will be 900 million such imaging devices in use worldwide within the next four years. The proliferation of wireless technology facilitates the transmission of images without permission of individuals and corporations, and has resulted in instances where they have been banned to protect privacy and prevent corporate espionage.
Web Services for Remote Portlets Approved By Global Standards Consortium
The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) "announced that its members have approved Web Services for Remote Portlets (WSRP) version 1.0 as an OASIS Standard, a status that signifies the highest level of ratification. WSRP standardizes the consumption of Web services in portal front ends, as well as the way in which content providers write Web services for portals...WSRP is the result of a collaboration of 25 OASIS member companies including BEA Systems, Citrix Systems, Factiva, IBM, Microsoft, Novell, Oracle, Plumtree Software, Reed Elsevier, SAP, Sun Microsystems, TIBCO, and Vignette."
New Gallup Poll On Patriot Act
From the Gallup Poll press release, September 9, 2003:
"The poll, conducted Aug. 25-26, finds 67% of Americans saying the government should not take steps to prevent terrorism if those steps would violate their basic civil liberties, while 29% say the government should take "all steps necessary" to prevent additional acts of terrorism in the United States, even if it means their basic civil liberties would be violated."
Hacker Who Exposed Vulnerabilities on Prominent Websites Out on Bail
According to this AP article, the complaint against computer hacker Adrian Lamo included the charge that in 2002 he hacked into the New York Times intranet to access LexisNexis, which he used to incur several hundred thousand dollars in charges as he searched for press about, among other topics, himself. Lamo is today free on bail, with the terms, according to Reuters, "requiring him to live with his parents and restricting his computer use to such things as e-mail and job searches." The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York continues to pursue the case prior to filing indictments.
Bills Introduced to Expand Patriot Act
Antiterrorism Tools Enhancement Act of 2003, H.R. 3037, To strengthen antiterrorism investigative tools, and for other purposes, introduced September 9, 2003.
Pretrial Detention and Lifetime Supervision of Terrorists Act of 2003, H.R. 3040, introduced September 9, 2003.
See also Bush Seeks to Toughen Anti-Terror Laws and
Justice Bell questions expanded Patriot Act: "A Florida Supreme Court justice told law students Thursday that he is concerned about President Bush’s request to expand provisions of the Patriot Act that would allow investigators to bypass grand juries when seeking subpoenas for suspected terrorists." Justice Bell was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush.
Executive Order on Iraqi Assets
Executive Order 13315 of August 28, 2003, Blocking Property of the Former Iraqi Regime, Its Senior Officials and Their Family Members, and Taking Certain Other Actions.
New DOT Website on Nationwide Highway Construction
The new National Highway Specifications (NHS) website provides a searchable database consisting of "currently approved standard highway construction specifications and supplemental specifications from state highway agencies and highway-related organizations throughout the United States." It is joint venture with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. See the NHS Help File for more details.
September 11, 2003
E-Gov and Smart Cards
Electronic Government: Challenges to the Adoption of Smart Card Technology, by Joel Willemssen, managing director, information technology, before the Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations, and the Census, House Committee on Government Reform. GAO-03-1108T, September 9. Highlights.
Next Installment of Slate's Guide to the Patriot Act
From Slate.com: A Guide to the Patriot Act, Part 3 focuses on electronic suveillance. See also Part 1 and Part 2 of the guide.
New Website on Enforcement of Microsoft Antitrust Judgments
This new website, launched today by the California Dept. of Justice, coordinator for the participating states attorneys general listed on the left side of the homepage, allows consumers to post anonymous, online complaints concerning Microsoft's "unlawful monopoly conduct."
House Approved Fair Credit Reporting Act
H.R. 2622, to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act, to prevent identity theft, improve resolution of consumer disputes, improve the accuracy of consumer records, make improvements in the use of, and consumer access to, credit information, and for other purposes, passed the House on September 10.
Congressional Record, September 10, 2003: Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003.
From the Consumer's Union press release on the bill's passage: "This bill provides barebones protections for consumers while blocking states from enacting more meaningful identity theft and financial privacy reforms."
See also my posting from yesterday, Conflicts Between State and Federal Privacy Laws, and from August 28, Purchasing Personal Data on the Web, Privacy and Legislative Conflicts.
Enhancing Patent and Trademark Quality
From the July 24, 2003 Oversight hearing on "Patent Quality Improvement", this recently released Final Serial #38, 39 pages in pdf, includes the opening statements, testimony and prepared witness statements.
Patent Issued for Controlling Access to Internet Sites
A new patent, 6,606,659, "System and Method for Controlling Access to Internet Sites," has been granted to Websense Inc., as reported via this press release, which indicates that the technology involved "allows organizations to optimize their employees' use of the Internet via administrative options that enable control over what Web sites may be accessed, at what time of day and for how long."
In-Depth Review of Patriot Act's Impact on Privacy
From the Free Expression Policy Project (FEPP), this revised commentary by Nancy Kranich, FEPP Senior Research Fellow: The Impact of the USA PATRIOT Act: An Update.
Commentary on Patriot Act
2 Years Later | Civil Liberties Patriot Gains (& Losses)
"The U.S.A. Patriot Act, the largest expansion of government search and surveillance powers in U.S. history, passed Congress without much dissent soon after the September 11 attacks. Let's just say people had other things on their minds than the small print of a 300-page bill that John Ashcroft & Co. assured would protect us. After all, one thing we pretty much all agreed on after 9/11 was that we needed protecting."
September 10, 2003
New Report on Implementing EU Copyright Directive
From the independent group, the Foundation for Information Policy Research, this new guide, published September 8, Implementing the EU Copyright Directive, (128 pages, pdf). See this link for a table of contents to download specific sections in html, which include the following:
Background; Problems in the United States; Immediate public policy objectives; Wider public policy objectives; The Copyright Directive; Options for implementation; Summary of implementations, and country reports.
See also Copyright directive 'could be Europe's DMCA'
Online Forum Today With ACLU Director on CAPPS II
The Washington Post published an edited version of the transcript from an online forum on CAPPS II and civil liberties, held today with Barry Steinhardt, Director of the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Program.
TSA Delays Release of 9/11 Records
From the Memory Hole's Publisher and editor, Russ Kick, a copy of the TSA reply in response to his FOIA request for information related to the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon.
Managing Electronic Evidence
From the September 2003 issue of ABA Law Practice Today, Electronic Discovery: The Top 10 Challenges and Solutions.
FTC Report to Congress on Federal Telemarketing Laws
Federal Trade Commission Report to Congress, Pursuant to the Do Not Call Implementation Act, on Regulatory Coordination in Federal Telemarketing Laws (September 2003). [Link]
Text of the Commission Report
Appendix A: The Federal Trade Commission's Amended Telemarketing Sales Rule and Statement of Basis and Purpose
Appendix B: The Federal Communications Commission's Amended Telephone Consumer Protection Act Regulations and Report and Order
Are E-Books Still Viable, or is Amazon Preparing an Alternative?
BarnesandNoble.com is no longer selling e-books, according to this posting on their website. However, a New York Times article by David D. Kirkpatrick, discusses the mid-September launch by Amazon.com of "a searchable online archive with the texts of tens of thousands of books of nonfiction, according to several publishing executives involved." This program is called Look Inside the Book II.
For an update, see this September 14 Reuters article, which states, "For now, e-books are an afterthought in the publishing world. Less than 500,000 electronic books were sold in the United States in 2002, compared with more than 1.5 billion printed books, estimates research firm Ipsos-Insight in Chicago," and for reference, this May 29 AP article, E-books down...at BookExpo America
Conflicts Between State and Federal Privacy Laws
From MSN Money, two articles that address the conflicts inherent in current and proposed state and federal privacy legislation focused on the distribution of personal financial data.
Congress ready to undo state privacy laws. See H.R. 2622, to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
The top 10 states for protecting privacy
Hearing on Music Downloading Addresses Scope of DMCA
Hearing Before the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate on "P****graphy, Technology, and Process: Problems and Solutions on Peer-to-Peer Networks." September 9, 2003. [this site provides links to all available testimony]
In particular, see the testimony of William Barr, Exec. VP and General Counsel, Verizon Communications(who served as Attorney General of the United States in the George H. Bush administration), in which he responds to the RIAA file sharing subpoenas: "Verizon believes that the district court was wrong in concluding that Congress authorized such a broad and promiscuous subpoena procedure in the DMCA—but whatever the courts ultimately conclude on this issue—the subpoena power endorsed by the district court is not an effective remedy for copyright holders
and has great costs in terms of personal privacy, constitutional rights of free expression and association, and the continued growth of the Internet."
From the testimony of Cary Sherman, President and General Counsel, RIAA: "Under a DMCA information subpoena, a copyright owner can only receive information that is necessary to identify and contact the alleged infringer – a name, address, phone number, and e-mail. More importantly, the copyright owner is statutorily limited to using that information exclusively for purposes of enforcing their copyright."
See also Verizon, RIAA Trade Jabs at Senate Hearing
What is Stealthware and How to Be Rid of It
From PCWorld.com, this article has some useful information about malicious applications that can bypass your firewall and clutter your computer screen with unwanted ads and plug-ins. Suggested solutions include the use of programs, available in free and fee versions, that identify and delete stealthware (including Spybot Search & Destroy and Ad-aware 6).
California Lawsuit Targets RIAA Clean Slate Program
Via the EFF, as provided by Ira P. Rothken:
"A lawsuit was filed today on behalf of the general public of the State of California against the RIAA for unfair, deceptive, and unlawful business practices regarding its "Clean Slate" program. This lawsuit below seeks a remedy to stop the RIAA from engaging in unlawful, misleading, and fraudulent business practices including advertising an "Amnesty Program" to members of the general public that does not provide real amnesty from being sued and a "Clean Slate Program" that does not provide a real "clean slate." Here is a link to a copy of the lawsuit filed today in Marin County Superior Court in California."
September 09, 2003
Portrait of Those Targeted by RIAA Lawsuit Emerges
According to a WSJ article today, the RIAA contends that the target of its current spate of 261 lawsuits, filed around the country, are individuals who have compiled substantial libraries of pirated music, comprising 1,000 or more songs, which were then made available via file sharing programs such as Kazaa and Grokster. The RIAA has not made available a list of those it has sued, but the following articles provide further information on where the suits were filed, and against whom:
Elderly man, schoolgirl, professor among file-swapping defendants
Music lawsuits snare 18 in Bay Area
20 Colorado Residents Sued Over Internet Music Downloads
Record Labels Settle First of 261 Music-Swap Suits (with a 12 year old girl)
See also this related New York Times article, Fighting the Idea That All the Internet Is Free.
Senator Issues Warning on RIAA Music Downloading Amnesty Program
Sen. Norm Coleman, who has taken an active interest in the agressive efforts by the music industry to prevent music downloading, issued a statement on September 8 responding to the RIAA's amnesty program, which said in part:
"The newly proposed "amnesty" is clearly a strategy by the industry to address some of the concerns I and others have had in this matter. But, it raises new issues that require careful analysis and review. An amnesty that could involve millions of kids submitting and signing legal documents that plead themselves guilty to the Recording Industry Association of America may not be the best approach to achieving a balance between protecting copyright laws and punishing those who violate those laws."
Digital Archiving Program Based on PDF
A committee of the Society of American Archivists, in conjunction with various associations representing imaging services providers, are evaluating new standards for a modified form of PDF, called PDF-A (for Portable Document Format Archive), which they propose as an option for the long-term storage of electronic documents.
New Survey Indicates Americans Remain Fearful of Terrorism, Willing to Compromise Civil Liberties
Continuity and Change in Support for Civil Liberties after the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, (47 pages, pdf) is the second part of a national survey (by Michigan State University), conducted between January and May 2003, which queried the same group of 679 individuals as the first survey undertaken in the months immediately after the 9/11 attacks. The focus remains whether Americans continue to be "willing to concede rights to the government in order to attain greater security." Within this context, it considers homeland security programs/legislation that were implemented/passed (Patriot Act, Dept. of Homeland Security) as well those projects that were abandoned (Operation TIPS, the Total Information Awareness Program). The study concludes that Americans remain deeply concerned with domestic terrorism and are therefore willing to accept an expanded level of government surveillance even if this results in diminished civil liberties.
Hearing on ID Theft, Fraud and Homeland Security
The Alias Among Us: The Homeland Security and Terrorism from Document Fraud, Identity Theft and Social Security Number Misuse, Senate Finance Committee Hearing, September 9, 2003 (this site provides links to testimony by seven witnesses as well as committee members).
From GCN.com's coverage of this hearing: "the General Accounting Office’s Robert J. Cramer (Managing Director, Office of Special Investigations) described how auditors successfully used a variety of false IDs to enter the country, purchase handguns, acquire driver’s licenses and roam federal buildings."[Link to Cramer's statement]
See also Mr. Cramer's previous statement on weakeness in screening entrants into the U.S., before the same committee, on Janaury 30, 2003.
CAPPS II Continues to Generate Opposition
Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II), to be implemented by the summer of 2004, is the focus of several recent articles and notices:
From the Washington Post, Fliers to Be Rated for Risk Level - New System Will Scrutinize Each Passenger, Assign Color Code
Opinion from the St. Petersburg Times, Fly the suspicious skies: "Before it has even been implemented, the future of airport security is obsolete. For about $150 worth of fake IDs and identity research, anyone can fool the computerized passenger screening system expected to arrive at airports by the summer of 2004."
EPIC announced that the organization's continuing efforts to obtain documents concerning the CAPPS II program (under the Freedom of Information Act), from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), have finally proved successful.
The Patriot Act: A Slate Guide to the Highlights
A Guide to the Patriot Act, Part 1 - Should you be scared of the Patriot Act? proclaims there are villans on both side of the fight over the extension of this act, as well as its proposed progeny, the Victory Act (as the Patriot Act II was quickly dispatched while still in draft). This part of the guide focuses on Section 215 (Access to Records and Other Items Under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act). Part II of this four part guide addresses "changes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, and sneak and peek warrants."
September 08, 2003
Public Libraries Around the Country Protect Patron Privacy
From Boston.com, another article focused on public library efforts to maintain the privacy of their patron's usage records:
"The public library in Boulder, the home of the University of Colorado, has adopted one of the country's most aggressive policies to keep circulation records private. The library keeps a bare minimum of information on books that are checked out and, when books are returned, any record of who checked them out is purged from the library's computer."
New Legal Tech Blog
News from Jeff Beard on the launch of his blog, LawTech Guru, where he will "be covering legal technology, mobile devices, strategic planning and law practice management, web technologies, as well as privacy and security issues and some interesting blogging tips."
CA Bill To Increase Consumer Access to Data Sold to 3rd Parties
SB 27, the "Shine the Light" privacy bill sponsored by California State Senator Liz Figueroa, would, as indicated in the most recently amended version (September 5):
"...require a business that discloses a customer's personal information, including information relating to income or purchases, to a 3rd party for direct marketing purposes to provide the customer, within 30 days after the customer's request, as specified, in writing or by e-mail the names and addresses of the recipients of that information and specified details regarding the information disclosed, except as specified." [
Link]
See also this related Wired article.
Plethora of Personal Data On Web
Vanishing from the Net a difficult task: Phone numbers, addresses and directions to homes and offices, county real estate tax information, and lots more personal data, all available using search engines as well as free and fee-based public records sites.
Report Documents Staff of Homeland Security Department
The report and data listed below were published by Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), who issued this related news advisory on August 25 about their research on the Department of Homeland Security, which is ongoing and will result in further documentation.
Department of Homeland Security - The First Months
Department of Homeland Security, Location of Full-time Staff , March, 2003
Staff by County of the Department of Homeland Security, March 2003
RIAA Press Release on P2P File Sharing Lawsuits
"Recording Industry Begins Suing P2P File Sharers Who Illegally Offer Copyrighted Music Online." This press release, from the RIAA website, may be difficult to access as the site has been intermittently unavailable, due no doubt to the volume of press attention to these lawsuits.
District Court Rules in Favor of Pop-Up Ads
Judge Gerald Bruce Lee, of the US District Court, Eastern District of Virginia released a decision on September 5 that stated "Alas, we computer users must endure pop-up advertising," in the case of U-Haul International, Inc., v. WhenU.com, Inc., et al., Civ. Act. No.03-1469-A. Partial summary judgment had already been granted on June 23 against U-Haul, who was seeking to bar pop-up ads that orginated from WhenU.com in what U-Haul claimed was a violation of their trademarks and copyright.
Mergers in Publishing Industry Under Scrutiny
Information Access Alliance
"The Information Access Alliance (a group that includes AALL, ALA, SLA, ACRL, MLA, and SPARC) believes that a new standard of antitrust review should be adopted by state and federal antitrust enforcement agencies in examining merger transactions in the serials publishing industry. When reviewing proposed mergers, antitrust authorities should consider the decision-making process used by libraries – the primary customers of STM and legal serial publications – to make purchasing decisions. Only then will these mergers be subjected to the degree of scrutiny they deserve and adequate access be preserved."
Publisher Mergers: A Consumer-Based Approach to Antitrust Analysis, (pdf) White Paper.
Another Guide on Info Syndication Format
RSS - A Primer for Publishers & Content Providers:
"This document is aimed at publishers and content providers with the intention of introducing & explaining the concepts behind RSS and addressing some commonly expressed concerns...the guidelines do provide recommendations for good practice, case studies on RSS production and links to tools and specifications which will provide useful starting points for those tasked with actually producing RSS feeds." (via SiteLines)
Software Apps to Block Spam
Interesting article about several companies that provide their anti-spam software to dozens of ISPs, which is in turn used to block billions and billions of unwanted emails each month on the enterprise and home user level.
Proposed House Bill On Database Protection Subject of Upcoming Hearings
Reuters reported that House Committees, Judiciary and Energy and Commerce, will hold joint hearings in the near future on a proposed bill "that would prevent wholesale copying of school guides, news archives and other databases which do not enjoy copyright protection." Thanks to Marv Johnson for the link to the draft of this bill, the Database and Collections of Information Misappropriations Act.
See also this related posting from September 23, Hearing on Proposed Database Misappropriation Bill
Arrest Warrant Issued for Hacker of Major Websites
According to this report on SecurityFocus.com, the FBI is trying to locate and arrest computer hacker Adrian Lamo, who "has become famous for publicly exposing gaping security holes at large corporations" that include the New York Times, AOL and Yahoo. Mr. Lamo has apparently agreed to turn himself in.
See Title 18 USC PART I, Chapter 47, Sec. 1029, and Title 18 USC PART I, Chapter 47, Sec. 1030.
Timing is Right for Legal Music Download Sites As RIAA Issues New Lawsuits
Via Kuro5hin.org, links to websites for legal music downloads, which is a timely resource in light of this news from the RIAA today that states in part:
"..its member companies have filed the first wave of what could ultimately be thousands of civil lawsuits against major offenders who have been illegally distributing substantial amounts (averaging more than 1,000 copyrighted music files each) of copyrighted music on peer-to-peer networks. The RIAA emphasized that these lawsuits (note: 261) have come only after a multi-year effort to educate the public about the illegality of unauthorized downloading and noted that major music companies have made vast catalogues of music available to dozens of new high-quality, low-cost, legitimate online services."
Details of the RIAA "amnesty program' on copyright enforcement, Clean Slate, are available here in pdf via the website, music united for strong copyright. See also the Clean Slate Program Affidavit, via the RIAA site.
See also the EFF RIA Subpoena Database and this press release that warns about the "amnesty program."
September 05, 2003
Airline Passenger Data Conflict Between US and EU
From Statewatch.com:
"European Commission tells USA that demands for access to data on airline passengers breaches EU Data Protection Directive - correspondence reveals that USA is also asking for Advance Passenger Information to vet those flying."
DOJ Objects to Website Statement on Patriot Act
The DOJ took issue with a statement on the Patriot Act posted to the ABCNews Nightline website yesterday, resulting in this press release. The following "correction" now appears on the Nightline website:
Correction - Yesterday, a promo for Nightline posted on the ABCNEWS homepage incorrectly read: "Imagine a nation where police can search your home without a court order or a warrant. Don't look too far, it's already here." The correct copy should read: "Imagine a nation where police can search your home or medical records without your knowledge. Don't look too far, it's already here.
In related news, see also this recent article, On the Road With Ashcroft.
Article on How Government Can Effectively Leverage the Internet
Steven Clift posted to Slashdot on his recent article, E-Democracy, E-Governance, and Public Net-work, which offers some interesting recommendations along with illustrative web links.
A Librarian's Perspective on RSS and News Aggregators
RSS and News Aggregators: What Do You Really Need To Know To Keep Up? by Steven J. Bell, Director of the Library, Paul J. Gutman Library, Philadelphia University.
Commentary on CAPPS II
From Salon.com, this commentary, Brave new skies, by Farhad Manjoo, provides context and perspective to the ongoing controversy engendered by the government's computer-assisted passenger prescreening system (CAPPS II).
Amnesty Program for Music Downloaders
Music industry to unveil amnesty offer for Internet downloaders:
"The recording industry is expected to announce as early as next week an amnesty program for people who admit they illegally share music files across the Internet, promising not to sue them in exchange for their admission and pledge to delete the songs off their computers."
CDT Wants Privacy Protections for WhoIs Database
The Center for Democracy and Technology sent a letter on September 4 to Reps. Adam Smith and Howard Berman, House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property, urging the implementation of privacy protections for personal information entered in the WhoIs domain name database.
See also my posting from September 4 on the Hearing on Whois Data Fraud.
Inroads in Corporate Blogging
Early adopters of corporate blogging include some law firms, according to this E-Commerce Times article. See also this posting from the June 2003 Law of the Blog conference, which addresses some of the important issues associated with this nascent process in the legal sector.
Release of the 2003 Privacy and Human Rights Report
EPIC and Privacy International today released their Privacy and Human Rights 2003 report. "This extensive survey examines the state of civil liberties around the world. Key topics include Total Information Awareness, the public response to the Patriot Act, biometric identification, and new technologies of surveillance."
Significant Increase in FOIA Requests
From a recent Dept. of Justice FOIA Post:
"The total number of Freedom of Information Act/Privacy Act access requests received by all federal departments and agencies during Fiscal Year 2002 was 2,402,938. This is 156,726 more than the number of requests received during Fiscal Year 2001, an increase of nearly 7%, and it marks the third consecutive year in which the two-million-request level has been exceeded."
For guidance about filing a FOIA request, see this recent LLRX.com column.
September 04, 2003
Database Vendor Eliminates Personal Data on Mexican Citizens
AP reported that commercial online public records provider ChoicePoint has eliminated its database of "personal information of 65 million voting-age Mexican citizens" following a controvery surrounding the means by which this information was obtained. The company has a contract with the Dept. of Justice, which uses the system for activities associated with homeland security.
See also this April 30, 2003 article, "Mexican data acquired by ChoicePoint included more details than originally suspected."
Hearing on Whois Data Fraud
From the Committee on Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property September 4, 2003 - Oversight Hearing on "Internet Domain Name Fraud - the U.S. Government’s Role in Ensuring Public Access to Accurate Whois Data":
Witness List
testimony of: Steven Metalitz, Benjamin Edelman, James Farnan, Theodore Kassinger.
See also: Lax controls encourage Web scams, lawmakers say.
Print Newspapers Still the Popular Choice With Boomers
AP reports that according to data from a Pew Internet and American Life report to be released this fall, baby boomers still prefer to read their news in print, rather than online. The majority of those surveyed who comprise the "older techie elite" (ages 42-62) regularly turn to online sources for breaking news, but indicate that there is a greater comfort level, and easier and more comprehensive access to newspaper content, in print.
September 03, 2003
Internet Archive Adds New Search Engine
This announcement from the Internet Archive about the site's new Recall feature, currently in beta, directs users to a powerpoint presentation describing how the new engine works. In addition, see the Help Page, which states that:
"Recall is a search engine at the Internet Archive that indexes the text of over 11 Billion pages. The archive has pages dating way back to 1996 through the present day."
Digital Document Preservation: Remember Microfiche - Well Its Back!
Marketplace response to the challenges of preserving digital documents appears to be incorporating a "back to the future" perspective according to this recent article, Upgrade and Archive: The Ongoing Threat of Data Extinction. The continual push to digitize documents into virtual libraries must be balanced against the critical issues associated with the lifespan of hardware and software. Digital libraries are subject to obsolescence long before print materials and their analog counterparts. For this reason, many librarians have long maintained microfiche and/or microfilm collections, which it is now apparent, reflected sound judgment and considerable foresight.
Commentary on Sec. 215 of the Patriot Act
This commentary, Why the ACLU Is Right To Challenge The FBI's Access to Library, Bookstore, and Business Records Under the USA PATRIOT Act, by Anita Ramasastry, focuses on the privacy issues and related lawsuits associated with the FBI's ability to invoke Sec. 215, the Access to Records and Other Items Under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
E-Mail Retention Compliance Issues
Lost in the Mail:
"Adhering to the array of SEC and NASD regulations around e-mail retention is going to be a full-time job for firms that hope to avoid the fines, lawsuits and bad press that come with non-compliance. It is estimated that over 16 billion business e-mail messages are sent a day, and financial firms are stuck with the unenviable task of figuring out how to deal with them. "Dealing with them" includes managing, archiving, retrieving and monitoring e-mails and instant messages."
Surveys Indicate Increase in Rate of ID Theft
The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse provides summaries of, and links to, data on three recent surveys documenting the rise in the rate of ID theft:
Federal Trade Commission Survey – September 2003
Gartner Survey – July 2003
Privacy & American Business Survey – July 2003
See also FTC Overview Report and Timeline of the ID Theft Program (October 1998 Through September 2003) [PDF 78KB], and the associated press release.
FOIA and Illinois Gov't Docs.
Illinois Strengthens Open Government Laws:
"Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) recently signed two pieces of
legislation into law that expand current open government laws. The first requires local government bodies to record closed meetings; the second allows attorneys fees and court costs to be awarded to plaintiffs in Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) cases."
September 02, 2003
A Proposal to Stop Spam
Giving E-mail back to the users: Using digital signatures to solve the spam problem:
"This paper argues that current legislative and private attempts to stop spam are either ineffective, or involve unacceptable tradeoffs. The key to solving the spam problem is recognizing the importance of e-mail authentication and the granting of permissions. Properly used, digital signatures can easily authenticate e-mail for effective spam control."
Members of the FISA Court Published
Secrecy News reports on the names of the current eleven members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA), along with the date each was appointed as well as when their respective appointments expire. The author of this report, Steven Aftergood, also states, "A full profile of the Court today -- its members, their views of the USA Patriot Act and the war on terrorism, and their experience with the FISA process -- remains to be written."
Prohibition on Citing to Unpublished Decisions May Be Removed
A New Proposal to Permit Lawyers To Cite "Unpublished" Opinions: Does It Go Far Enough?:
A rule proposed by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts would allow attorneys to cite unpublished opinions. This would require an amendment to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. If this change were to be adopted, it would not go into effect until late 2005 or 2006.
In Wake of Patent Ruling, Microsoft Plans Changes to IE
IE Patent Loss Aftershocks Reverberate. This article indicates that in the wake of the recent $521 milllion patent verdict against Microsoft, the company will make unspecified changes to its IE browser.
New American Lawyer Survey on Top Law Firms
The American Lawyer has published a new survey, the A-List, which ranks the top 200 law firms according to the following methodology: revenue, pro bono, associate satisfaction, and diversity of the lawyers.
China to Implement Next Generation ID Cards
Chinese ID cards to carry genetic sample:
The article reports that by 2004, government issued ID cards "will carry an 18-digit code representing a citizen's genetic code, based on DNA from a blood, hair or cell sample." This information comes via an article in the French news service transfert.net.
Boolean Searching Now Supported by Gigablast
According to Matt Wells, owner of the search engine Gigablast, his site now supports boolean logic. "You should be able to do nested boolean queries using the traditional OR, AND, OR NOT and AND NOT boolean operators." See his help page here.
September 01, 2003
New Survey Indicates Americans Fear Cyberattacks
The Internet and Emergency Preparedness: A joint survey with Federal Computer Week magazine: this nine page (pdf) data memo documents 13 survey questions, and the answers provided by 1001 adult Americans (coincidentally conducted before the power outages that hit the eastern US, Toronto and Ottowa two weeks ago).
From the summary: "Half of Americans fear that terrorists might cripple American utilities such as electric, transportation and water systems, or its banks and major corporations through cyber-attacks."
Library of Congress Overwhelmed By New Acquisitions
This AP article documents the critical shortage of space at the Library of Congress, which houses the largest library collection in the world. The library is in the process of building offsite storage warehouses (as many as 13) in nearby Maryland.
Blog Promotes Use of Internet to Improve Legal Services to Underserved Americans
From Jerry Lawson, news of a recently launched team blog with a distinguished and growing group of contributors, called eLawyer Blog, whose mission statement reads as follows:
"This site has been established to promote the use of technology, especially the Internet, to improve the delivery of legal services to Americans of moderate to low income. We want to show lawyers how they can use technology to meet the needs of underserved markets--and make good mony by doing so."
OMB Proposes Peer Review for All Significant Regulatory Documents
As noted by OMB Watch, on August 29, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), an agency within the Office of Management and Budget, (OMB) released a draft bulletin "proposing a standardized process by which all significant regulatory documents (of the most important science disseminated by the federal government) will be subject to peer review by qualified specialists in appropriate technical disciplines."
For reference, President George W. Bush revived the OIRA, created by President Reagan: "Each of the 600 or so major rules issued each year by executive agencies needs clearance from OIRA." [Link]. According to this WSJ article on the OIRA, published June 12, 2002, "the Bush administration has rejected rules at the highest rate since President Reagan's first term."
Software Consumer Bill of Rights
Cem Kaner, Professor, Department of Computer Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, posted on his blog the text of ten suggested principles that comprise a "Software Customer Bill of Rights" which he authored in an effort to "restore integrity and trust -- and consumer confidence, consumer excitement, and sales - in this stalled marketplace."
Consumers and Fee-Based Newspaper Content
Newspapers Want to Charge for Content, but Will Readers Pay? Peter Krasilovsky, Senior Partner, Borrell Associates, a media consulting firm, speaking at a recent workshop on journalism, stated that "Paid content is a great way to make more money, but the real money is in advertising and marketing..."