Google Exonerated of Data Violations in UK
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2010 – Following an investigation of Google’s unauthorized Wi-Fi data collection, UK data protection authorities announced that the telecom giant had not done real damage. Keep Reading
Facebook, Google, and Apple Ease Privacy Concerns of Senators
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2010 – Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation are worried about unclear consumer online privacy policies and the negative effects of targeted advertising. Representatives from Apple, Facebook, Google, The Cato Institute, AT&T, and the Annenberg School for Communication overviewed their current privacy policies and tools, and outlined the future of their privacy controls. Keep Reading
Genachowski and Leibowitz Testify Before Senate on Privacy Issues
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2010 – The Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission have formed a task force to deal with online privacy concerns facing American consumers. Keep Reading
Sweden’s Pirate Party to Launch ISP with Privacy Focus
WASHINGTON July 21, 2010- Sweden’s Pirate Party is planning to launch its own ISP which will be maintained by users. Subscribers will be responsible for fixing network issues and helping their fellow customers with technical support. The ISP will also not maintain any logs of usage. Users will access the ISP via an anonymous virtual private network service, iPredator, which famously manages The Pirate Bay. Keep Reading
Is Apple Big Brother?
WASHINGTON, July 21, 2010 – Buried within a 40 page privacy policy Apple says that it will share location data with its partners. “Apple and our partners and licensees may collect, use, and share precise location data, including the real-time geographic location of your Apple computer or device.” With increased concern by consumers about the collection and use of location data and other personal data being shared with advertisers Reps. Edward Markey and Joe Barton sent Apple CEO Steve Jobs a letter requesting information on the policy and services. Keep Reading
Experts Debate Causes, Cures for Cyber Bullying and High Risk Behaviors
WASHINGTON, June 29, 2010 – The best way to avoid cyber bullying is not to be a teenage girl, said an expert on Tuesday at a panel discussion hosted by the Progress and Freedom Foundation. The remarks, made by Michael McKeehan, Verizon’s executive director of internet and technology policy, were in response to a question on “high risk behaviors” that lead children to become targets of online bullies. Keep Reading
Google Faces Lawsuits for Collecting Data from Unprotected Networks
WASHINGTON, June 7, 2010 – A class action lawsuit filed May 17 accuses Google of violating federal privacy and data acquisition laws, and asks that Google pay up to $100,000 to each individual from whom data was taken. The firm is also facing civil suits in Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Germany Spain and Italy. Keep Reading
Europe Looks for Economic Growth Through Its Digital Agenda
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2010 - One half of European productivity growth over the last 15 years can easily be attributed to information and communications technology, according to the European Commission. The commission is hoping to continue this trend by unveiling last month the Digital Agenda for Europe - a plan outlining ways for the European Union to embrace technologies contributing to its economic growth and spread its benefits throughout European society. Keep Reading
Irish ISP to Cut Off Illegal File Sharers
WASHINGTON, June 1, 2010 – Eircom, one of Ireland's biggest internet service providers, will cut off access to users who have been accused of illegal file-sharing. Keep Reading
Court Orders Google to Turn Over Wireless Data in Portland Case
WASHINGTON, May 31, 2010 - A U.S. District Court in Portland, Ore., has ordered Google to turn over wireless data from its Street View cars which was taken while photographing neighborhoods. Keep Reading
Privacy Experts Urge U.S. to Engage in Global Debate, but Get Own House in Order
WASHINGTON, May 7, 2010 – The United States needs to act as a world leader by using its talents to help develop an innovative global privacy framework, but it must get its own house in order to succeed, said privacy experts Friday at an event hosted by the Commerce Department. Keep Reading
House Republican Leaders Ask for Permission to Use Skype
WASHINGTON, April 26, 2010 – House Republican leaders sent a letter last week to the House speaker and chairman of the Administration Committee requesting that lawmakers be allowed to use more video conferencing software applications to communicate with constituents. Keep Reading
ACLU Applauds New Google Information Request Tracking Tool
WASHINGTON, April 26, 2010 – The American Civil Liberties Union is applauding Google’s new tool that tracks and displays the number of government requests that the company receives worldwide. Keep Reading
Commerce Seeks Comment on Privacy Law, Creates Task Force
WASHINGTON, April 22, 2010 – The Commerce Department is seeking public comment on the impact of privacy laws in the United States and around the world to determine if current laws serve consumer interests and democracy. It also this week announced the formation of an Internet Policy Task Force to identify public policy and operational issues impacting the private sector’s ability to best achieve economic growth and job creation through the Internet. Keep Reading
Connecting America, Chapter 4: ‘Broadband Competition and Innovation Policy’
Twenty-five years ago, the World Wide Web did not exist. Very few Americans had even seen a mobile phone, and broadband networks were available only to a few businesses and research institutions. Today, innovations such as broadband and others like it drive the creation of a wide variety of products and services. The competitive forces that sparked these breakthroughs need to be nurtured so that the United States can continue to reap the benefits of its unrivaled culture of innovation. Keep Reading
National Broadband Plan: A Look at Chapter 4 and Privacy
WASHINGTON, April 2, 2010 – Chapter Four of the plan focuses on broadband competition and innovation policy. It’s one of the most far-reaching sections in the entire document. It starts by addressing various mobile and fixed networks and moves on to discuss specific devices, privacy and identity theft. This third and final article summarizing Chapter 4 looks at the FCC’s take on set-top boxes, consumer privacy and digital taxation. Keep Reading
National Broadband Plan: A Look at Chapter 4 and FCC Recommendations
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2010 - Section Four of the plan focuses on broadband competition and innovation policy. It’s one of the most far-reaching sections in the entire 360-page document. This second article summarizing Chapter 4 looks at the FCC’s overall recommendations to enhance the nation’s broadband ecosystem. Keep Reading
National Broadband Plan: A Look at Chapter 4 and Networks
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2010 - Section Four of the plan focuses on broadband competition and innovation policy. It’s one of the most far-reaching sections in the entire 360-page document. It starts by addressing various mobile and fixed networks and moves on to discuss specific devices, privacy and identity theft. It concludes with discussion about the need for innovating and changing the current network. Keep Reading
‘National Purposes’ Aspect of National Broadband Plan Aims For Bold Actions Without Much Spending
WASHINGTON, March 15, 2010 - Blair Levin, head of the Federal Communications Commission’s national broadband plan and the “national purposes” team at the agency previewed key points from the upcoming national broadband plan. The object of the plan, they said, is not just to expand broadband networks, but to enable the creation of applications and innovations built upon that network. The six primary objective areas presented were healthcare, education, energy, civic engagement, economic expansion, and public safety. Keep Reading
Panelists Debate Copyrights, Open Internet in U.S. Broadband Plan
WASHINGTON, January 19, 2010 - Communication and intellectual property experts debated whether a national broadband plan is the right vehicle for addressing copyright and network neutrality issues and whether the FCC is overstepping its bounds by dabbling with copyright issues. Public Knowledge President Gigi Sohn sparred with officials from the Recording Industry Association of America, telling RIAA’s executive vice president and general counsel that the recording and Hollywood industries along with some song writers want iinternet service providers to filter networks for copyright infringement. Keep Reading
Advocate Alleges ‘Racial Labeling’ in Targeted Online Ads
WASHINGTON, December 9, 2009 - The ubiquity of online advertising is a product of its importance to the internet economy, said a group of consumer advocates Wednesday during a debate on the future of online advertising. But the impact of new targeted advertising methods on consumer privacy and its potential to manipulate online experiences was the subject of heated argument at the event, sponsored by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Keep Reading
Technology Think Tank Launches ‘Take Back Your Privacy’ Campaign
The Center for Democracy & Technology this week launched a “Take Back Your Privacy” campaign to support the creation of more user-friendly privacy tools and push for the passage of a federal consumer privacy law. "It's time for privacy law and online practices to catch up with the seismic shifts in technology," CDT President and CEO Leslie Harris said in a statement Thursday. "We know that Americans want better privacy protections. Take Back Your Privacy will help them make sure that their voices a Keep Reading
Social Networks’ Explosive Growth Revives Decades-Long Debate On Digital Privacy
SAN FRANCISCO, December 2, 2009 - The phenomenal growth of online social networks is finally moving the decades-long debate over the nature of privacy in the digital world forward, said legal experts at an annual conference on innovation in San Francisco on Tuesday. Congress has threatened to enact and revamp consumer privacy laws for decades, but the complexity of the task has generally stumped the body, except for the areas of finance and health. Keep Reading
Ubiquitous Connectivity: Be Careful What You Wish For, Warn Researchers
SAN FRANCISCO, December 1, 2009 - Technophiles and U.S. policymakers have spent decades promising the public that a ubiquitously-networked society would be a people-powered-utopia filled with useful, actionable information. President Barack Obama's 2008 campaign is the most prominent example of how internet-enabled social networks have fundamentally changed the fabric of our society. But a thoughtless rush to make the internet pervasive, and to connect with one another socially online could in fact poison the delicately-balanced relationships that exist in the rapidly vanishing concept of the "offline" world, warned several leading thinkers at an annual conference on innovation on Tuesday. Keep Reading
Turkey Wants To Be The Internet Gatekeeper For Its Citizens
WASHINGTON, November 30, 2009 - Turkey’s government is working on a project that would give every child a designated email address at birth, according to reports coming from the country’s state news agency late Monday. Turkey is also looking to develop a homegrown Internet search engine to address government national security concerns related to citizens using search engines based in foreign countries. Keep Reading