Net Tax Moratorium to Expire by Year’s End
The Tax Relief Extension Act of 2003 (H.R. 3521 and S. 1896) will expire on December 31, 2003. ‘Net Tax Ban Renewal Hopes Fade for 2003
FOIA Request for “No Fly” Documents Leaves Many Questions Unanswered
In response to a FOIA request for documents on the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) no-fly lists or “watch lists,” the ACLU obtained 94 pages of documents from the FBI that are posted here. The documents are heavily redacted. The ACLU press release is here.
Review of Blogging Applications
From PC Magazine, a brief “how-to” overview of blogging features, tools and pricing, as well as ratings of the following applications: Blogger/Blog*Spot, LiveJournal, Radio UserLand, Tripod Blog Builder, TypePad, Weblogger, Xanga, Movable Type 2.64. The author awards TypePad, the hosted version of Movable Type, with the honor as best in its class.
Pivotal Debate Developing On Administration of the Net
The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), scheduled to begin in Geneva on December 10, is shaping up to be the backdrop for an escalating dispute focused on Internet governance. Think Web’s virtually government free? Think again Governments and Country-Code Top Level Domains: A Global Survey
EU Demands Compliance on E-Privacy Directive
With the expiration of an October 31 deadline for implementing the Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications, the European Commission indicated that legal action against nine member states may be necessary to ensure their compliance. The directive addresses e-privacy issues that include spam, the use of cookies, and the protection of customer data by ISPs.
Google Seeks Ruling on Trademarks and Keyword Searching
In anticipation of widely reported plans for a initial public offering (IPO) in early 2004, Google is seeking a ruling from District Court in San Jose, California to determine whether keyword searches associated with advertising sold by the site constitute trademark infringement. (Google, Inc. v. American Blind & Wallpaper Factory, Inc. (Complaint) , ND Ca) …
RIAA Issues New Round of Lawsuits for Music Downloads
The RIAA filed 41 new lawsuits in a continued effort to stem the tide of music file-sharing, and indicated that previous lawsuits have resulted in settlements that average $3,000.
House Cmte. Plans Library E-Rate Fraud Hearings
“The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee plans a February hearing to probe fraud allegations in the E-Rate program, the nation’s $2.25 billion initiative to help schools and libraries connect to the Internet.” [Link] Previous postings on the e-rate program
President Signs Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003
President Bush Signs Identity Theft Legislation From the Congressional Record, H.R. 2622 White House Fact Sheet on the Act, which provides that consumers may obtain each year, free of charge, a personal credit history report, that merchants must omit from sales receipts all but the last five digits of a customer’s credit card number, and …
Prospects for Spam Relief Remain Dim
From tech research firm Gartner: Spam Will Likely Worsen Despite U.S. Law. See the CAN-SPAM Act
History of FOIA Includes Denial and Exemptions
From the November/December 2003 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: How agencies thwart the Freedom of Information Act, by Jeffrey T. Richelson, a senior fellow with the National Security Archive, Washington, D.C. “Although the Freedom of Information Act has been a blessing to academics, journalists, and activists, it is seen as a curse by some in …
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