Author archives

EPA Removes Data From Website to Evaluate Accuracy

From OMB Watch: “The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has removed one database from its public website and slightly altered another due to a Data Quality Act (DQA) challenge submitted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber submitted the request May 26, 2004, asserting that physical and chemical property information in several EPA databases was …

Subjects: E-Government, Freedom of Information, Government Documents

Business.com Now Offers People Search

Press release: “Business.com… announced the addition of “People Search” to its core business search capabilities. “People Search” allows business professionals to easily locate and learn about sales prospects, potential business partners, and job candidates on the Web by searching summaries of 24 million business people via a database… (that) continually scans millions of corporate websites, …

Subjects: E-Commerce, Legal Research

Amazon’s Yellow Pages Equipped With Millions of Images From Cities Across America

New from Amazon’s A9.com Search – Yellow Pages on A9.com: “Using trucks equipped with digital cameras, global positioning system (GPS) receivers, and proprietary software and hardware, A9.com drove tens of thousands of miles capturing images and matching them with businesses and the way they look from the street.” Web Yellow Page Search Gets Image Boost: …

Subjects: Search Engines

Call for Oversight on GPO Initiatives

From the American Library Association Washington Office Newsline: (proposed changes effective October 1, 2005) “…GPO would produce and distribute in print only the 50 titles listed on the Essential Titles for Public Use in Paper Format. The Essential Titles list, last revised in 2000, does not include important materials including maps, geological information, administrative decisions …

Subjects: E-Government, Government Documents, Libraries

New Guide on How to File FOIA Requests

“A new First Amendment Center Online research compilation examines the ins and outs of filing requests for government information under the federal Freedom of Information Act. The FOIA article by Taylor Holliday provides an introduction to the act, as well as information on the Privacy Act, how to get started on an FOIA filing, what …

Subjects: Freedom of Information

Updated CRS Report on Spyware and Privacy

CRS Report – Spyware: Background and Policy Issues for Congress, Updated December 22, 2004. “Internet privacy issues encompass concerns about the collection of personally identifiable information (PII) from visitors to government and commercial websites, as well as debate over law enforcement or employer monitoring of electronic mail and Web usage. This report discusses Internet privacy …

Subjects: Government Documents, Privacy

Advocacy Group Asks New Congress for Privacy Protection and Action Against Spyware

“Testifying at the year’s first hearing of the House Commerce Committee, CDT reiterated that baseline privacy legislation was the best way to deal with the snowballing spyware epidemic and head off further threats to online privacy. CDT also highlighted the growing problem of affiliate networking, and called for stepped up enforcement against spyware purveyors and …

Subjects: Congress, Legislation, Privacy

Musicians and Industry File Briefs in P2P File Sharing Case

From Internet News – Hollywood: P2P is Not About Technology: “The entertainment industry urged the U.S. Supreme Court Monday afternoon not to give the companies developing peer-to-peer (P2P) music file swapping software a “perpetual free pass” to engage in “mind-boggling” copyright infringement. In a 67-page brief filed in advance of the March 29 Supreme Court …

Subjects: Copyright, Courts

NARA Guidance on Managing Web Records

“Web site operations are an integral part of an agency’s program. Managing web records properly is essential to effective web site operations, especially the mitigation of the risks an agency faces by using the web to carry out agency business. This guidance will assist agency officials in this regard, including agency program staff, webmasters, IT …

Subjects: E-Government, E-Records, Government Documents, Libraries

GAO Reports on Government Fraud and Waste

High-Risk Series: An Update, GAO-05-207, January 1, 2005, Highlights (PDF). “GAO’s audits and evaluations identify federal programs and operations that, in some cases, are high risk due to their greater vulnerabilities to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement…This year, GAO is designating four new high-risk areas. The first new area is establishing appropriate and effective information-sharing …

Subjects: Government Documents