Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery With Daily Postings Since 2002
A three year old web defamation case is in the news again. It began when Judge Joan Orie Melvin of the Pennsylvania Superior Court filed a defamation suit in Loudon County, Virginia in 1999 against an anonymous webmaster who published comments to his site, hosted by AOL. The AOL legal department posted copies of decisions …
Internet Community Supports Verizon’s User Privacy Defense. See my previous related posting which provides background on this case.
CNN is reporting that the NSA will shell out $282 million to significantly enhance technology applications used to monitor and evaluate e-mail, telephone and other communications in its ongoing anti-terrorism efforts.
The ACLU placed an ad in publications including the Congressional Quarterly Daily Monitor and Congress Daily, demanding “that any Homeland Security bill contain five basic civil liberties protections.”
ZDNet UK is reporting that a coalition of prominent U.S. high tech companies, calling themselves the Global Privacy Alliance (no web site available) wants the EU to relax its data protection laws to stimulate international e-commerce through the transfer of personal data collected on customers.
The Privacy Commissioner of Canda functions as an independent advocate on behalf of citizens with the power to investigate complaints and present cases to the Federal Court, as well as to research and publish advisory reports on privacy issues. The Commission’s website, in French and English versions, is simple, well designed and content rich. There …
The Hamilton County Clerk of Courts, Ohio, website has generated controversy as a result of the state’s Open Records Law , (see Chapter 149 section 43), allowing online access to “sensitive personal data” concerning Ohio citizens. James C. Cicell, Clerk of the Courts, has proposed safeguards for data that still protect the dissemination of court …
The International Association of Privacy Officers provides links to a range of advocacy, corporate, government and academic sites.
Amazon.com plans to update its privacy policy this October in response to pressure from advocacy group EPIC, consumer complaints and a coalition of state attorney generals. See this press release from Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly indicating that Amazon has agreed “to clarify policy, protect customer data.”
Testimony of Marc Rotenberg, Executive Director, Electronic Privacy Information Center, on September 24, 2002, before the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection, on H.R. 4678. Mr. Rotenberg stated, “In many respects it seems crafted to protect privacy violators from legal accountability. On almost every key provision it favors industry over the consumer, the …
The FTC announced today that they will unveil a new mascot called Dewie on September 26, at the Privacy2002 conference. Can’t wait!
Attorney General announces new guidelines to share information between federal law enforcement and the U.S. intelligence community, Septemer 23, 2002. “Today’s guidelines establish procedures for the disclosure to the intelligence community of grand jury and electronic, wire, and oral interception information that identifies a United States person, as defined by federal law.”
