WASHINGTON, June 13, 2013 - Most Americans have a negative view of data gathering and feel that they have little control over what information is available to businesses and the government, according to a poll released Thursday by Allstate and National Journal-Heartland Monitor. However, many Americans also recognize the benefits, including connecting with friends and… Keep Reading
SALT LAKE CITY, March 25, 2013 - Dennis Brimhall, CEO of Family Search International, discusses some of the recent changes and upgrades to the FamilySearch.org web site during the RootsTech conference here. FamilySearch.org is one of the most well-used genealogy web sites in the world. During the interview, Brimhall discussed the addition of social features… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Thursday, February 21st, 2013 – The broadband policy news and events service BroadbandBreakfast.com held its February 2013 Broadband Breakfast Club event “Data Caps, the Spectrum Crunch and the Wireless Home” this past Tuesday, February 19th, 2013 at Clyde’s of Gallery Place. Speakers included: Keynote: Ruth Milkman, Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Federal Communications Commission Panel: Roger Entner, Founder, Recon Analytics Nick Feamster, Associate Professor in… Keep Reading
February 18, 2013 - When pitcher C.J. Nitkowski first started blogging in 1997, even he could never have predicted how fast the medium would grow. By his own accord, Nitkowski “fell into being the first active player on the web.” In 1997, the Houston Astros website, astros.com, asked Nitkowski to write a semi-annual newsletter chronicling… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, January 25, 2013 – Data-sharing in a broadband-enabled world enables greater productivity for the government and the private sector, said officials at the first annual “Data Innovation Day” hosted Thursday by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Representatives from Amazon Web Services and the U.S. Department of Education touched on a common thread that… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, January 17, 2013 -- This past Tuesday, January 15th, the Broadband Breakfast Club featured explication and discussion of the key broadband policy issues projected for debate in Congress in 2013. Highlights included a keynote speech by Representative Anna G. Eshoo (D-California), Chair of the House Sub-Committee on Communications and Technology, followed by discussion among… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Thursday, September 20th, 2012 – The internet policy news and events service BroadbandBreakfast.com held its September 2012 Broadband Breakfast Club event “Measuring Broadband Performance: What Have We Learned in Four Years?” on Tuesday, September 18th, 2012 at Clyde’s of Gallery Place, 707 7th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001 from 8 am – 10 am. You can see highlights… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON Thursday April 19, 2012 – First search, then social media, and now privacy concerns? The digital world has transformed the way consumers access content; one can search an article they are interested in, subscribe to Google Reader, follow a friend’s recommendation from Twitter or read an article a co worker read via the Washington… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Friday, April 13, 2012 – The internet policy news and events service BroadbandBreakfast.com will hold its April 2012 Broadband Breakfast Club event “Social Networking, the End of Media and Future of Privacy” on Tuesday, April 17th, 2012 at Clyde’s of Gallery Place, 707 7th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001 from 8 am – 10… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON March 5, 2012. Since our Broadband Breakfast Panel Discussion on “Cybersecurity Legislation in Congress: Where Does it Stand” a couple of weeks ago there have been some notable cybersecurity headlines that we wanted to update you on. Since the panel, GOP Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.), Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Saxby… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, February 23, 2012 – Last week, after years of congressional hearings and dozens of legislative drafts, The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee introduced the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 S.2105. Senators Lieberman, Collins, Rockefeller and Feinstein introduced the bi-partisan legislation following a year of high profile cyberattacks on the Senate, CIA, FBI, Utility… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON February 20, 2012. Broadband Breakfast will host its February Breakfast Panel, Cybersecurity Legislation in Congress: Where Does it Stand?, the day before FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski delivers his remarks on cybersecurity at the Bipartisan Policy Center. Broadband Breakfast's panel will focus on the efforts to move cybersecurity on the Hill after years and years… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Friday, February 17th, 2012 – The internet policy news and events service BroadbandBreakfast.com will hold its February 2012 Broadband Breakfast Club event. “Cybersecurity Legislation in Congress: Where Does it Stand?” on Tuesday, February 21st, 2012 at Clyde’s of Gallery Place, 707 7th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001 from 8 am – 10 am. American… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Wednesday November 15, 2011 - November’s breakfast and panel discussion drew a packed crowd Tuesday morning as industry lawyers, lobbyists and experts filed into Clyde’s to hear from the Whitehouse, telecoms, energy management companies and utilities about the challenges and efficiencies that lies ahead with “The Smart Grid and Broadband.” Event Highlights "The Smart Grid and Broadband" from BroadbandBreakfast.com Complete Program "The Smart Grid and Broadband" from BroadbandBreakfast.com Nick Sinai, Senior Advisor to White House’s Chief Technology Officer gave the opening remarks at the breakfast. Sinai focused on what the Obama administration is doing to support, secure and modernize the energy system for the country. He noted that although the current grid has expanded, it is fundamentally still an analog grid and has been that way since the beginning of the 20th century. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON Monday October 17, 2011 - FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, CTIA The Wireless Association’s President and CEO Steve Largent and Consumers Union’s Policy Counsel Parul Desai held a press conference at Brookings Institute yesterday morning to announce new “Wireless Consumer Usage Notification Guidelines.” Building upon their Consumer Empowerment Agenda, the FCC has been working with… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, August 3, 2011 – U.S. customers may soon begin seeing data security technology involving ATMs and cell phones that would work without tracking people thanks to the efforts of a European security software company. Patrick Carroll, CEO of ValidSoft Limited, discussed the company's real-time fraud detection software VALid-POS last week. The program is already in the works to be deployed through a deal with Visa Europe. Carroll believes his firm's technology answers current privacy issues lawmakers and industry professionals have been trying to tackle for several years. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 20, 2011 – Despite bipartisan agreement over the need for effective cyber security legislation, members remain divided over authority and enforcement specifics. In an opinion piece in the Saturday edition of the Washington Post, Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI) critiqued another article published early July in which Sens. Joe Liebermann (ID-CT), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Tom Carper (D-DE) recommended proposed legislation that would grant the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statutory authority to work with industry to identify and evaluate critical cyber infrastructure and establish best practices between government and the private sector in order to improve security. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 18, 2011 – The Defense Department announced late last week a plan to proactively deal with cyber intrusions through a collaborative buildup of civilian and military network defenses. The DoD Strategy for Operating in Cyberspace (DSOC) is the first unified strategy for conducting operations in cyberspace between the Defense Department’s military, intelligence and business operations. The DoD is coordinating its cyber security efforts with the Department of Homeland Security and private companies responsible for maintaining critical infrastructure through threat information sharing and more robust network protection. The program is called Defense Industrial Base (DIB) Cyber Pilot. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON July 18, 2011- Two congressional subcommittees called on the heads of several government agencies late last week to inquire how each addresses Internet privacy issues. The panel, assembled by the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade and the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology included the heads of the Federal Communications Commission, Federal Trade Commission and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 13, 2011 – Child ID Theft more commonly occurs via organized crime, but the most severe damage happens when done by family members, experts concluded at a joint Child ID Theft forum Tuesday. Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice held the forum one day after hacktivist group ‘Anonymous’ attacked U.S. government security contractor, Booz Allen Hamilton, resulting in the theft of 90,000 military email addresses. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 1, 2011 – The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee assembled Wednesday its third hearing this legislative session on data privacy and security. In a hearing rushed so that members could make it to the Senate floor in time to vote, members and witnesses from government agencies and private sector entities testifying before the senate committee reiterated support for federal data security legislation. Consumer privacy bills such as the Do Not Track Online Act of 2011, Commercial Bill of Rights Act of 2011 and reintroduction of the Data Security and Breach Notification Act are all currently before the committee. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 30, 2011 – The Federalist Society convened Tuesday to discuss the complex and interconnected legal and policy issues of cyber security in relation to the law of armed conflict, privacy and legislative action. Morning and afternoon panels comprised of national security and economic security experts presented to the legal society the difficulties of applying the law of armed conflict towards cyber threats. The new threat conditions introduced by cyber intrusions and attacks do not fit the old paradigm of doing warfare. Panelists agreed, however, that the new rules should not be determined before major cyber conflicts have taken place. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 28, 2011 – A Center for American Progress panel assembled Monday explored the challenges presented by emerging Internet technology privacy issues with respect to Federal Trade Commission enforcement, child safety and free speech rights. Julie Brill, FTC Commissioner, addressed private sector and government solutions for protecting consumer data privacy in her keynote speech to a packed house of policy analysts, advocacy groups and government officials at the Center’s Washington, D.C. headquarters. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 22, 2011 – The Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism evaluated the Obama administration’s cyber security legislation proposal with respect to its own proposed cyber security proposals during a hearing Tuesday. Subcommittee members discussed with executive branch representatives the elements of the administration’s proposals to improve cyber security and individual privacy. Among the topics of the hearing were national data breach standards, the voluntary information sharing proposal and the recommendations for increased criminal penalties against cyber crime committed against critical infrastructure and racketeering. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 17, 2011 –,The Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute presented expertise on the emerging threat in cyberspace Thursday to journalists, private sector industry leaders, government officials and strategists in Washington. Lawrence Husick, Senior Fellow at Foreign Policy Research Institute’s (FPRI) Center on Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism, offered his expertise on leveraging technology as a defining characteristic of the modern terrorist. His presentation centered on the rapidly evolving nature of cyber attacks, and the lack of a comprehensive private sector cybersecurity initiative. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON June 16, 2011- Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN), along with Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), introduced a bill Wednesday that would make rules more stringent for collecting geolocation data on mobile device users. The Location Privacy Protection Act of 2011 would require companies to obtain users' expressed consent to collect location data and to notify users when they share location data with third parties. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 16, 2011 – Just days after Senate email accounts were hacked, the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade held a hearing Wednesday to discuss a draft bill that would require companies to minimize the amount of data collected from consumers and notify them within two days of a data breach. Subcommittee members met with witnesses to clarify the ambiguous language of a discussion draft of Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Mary Bono Mack’s (R-CA) Secure and Fortify (SAFE) Data Act. The measure addresses the increasing threat of data theft, in the wake of high-profile cyber attacks on Sony, Epsilon, Lockheed-Martin and other U.S. companies. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 9, 2011 - The Department of Commerce released its Cybersecurity, Innovation and the Internet Economy green paper on Wednesday, advising cooperation between the government and private sector to implement ways to address cybersecurity issues. The Internet Policy Taskforce, a department-wide group created in April 2010, wrote the green paper with the goal of addressing the pressing issues surrounding cyber security. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON June 8, 2011 - Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, re-introduced a bill Tuesday that would establish a national standard for the notification to consumers by corporations when data breaches occur. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) cosponsored the Personal Data Privacy and Security Act, a reiteration of bills by the same name that have failed in each of the three previous Congresses. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 6, 2011 – The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, Frank La Rue, presented his report on freedom of expression and the Internet to the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Friday, concluding that Internet access is a basic human right. In what was hailed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation as a ‘landmark report,’ La Rue’s report also declared that disconnecting individuals from the Internet goes against international law. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2011 – The House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade met on Thursday to learn the lessons from recent large-scale customer data breaches at Sony and Epsilon. The hearing examined the risks of the unprecedented data breaches, which Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-CA), Chair of the subcommittee, called a ‘ground zero’ for cyber attacks. Other members of the subcommittee also assessed current investigation efforts by those companies, and gathered input and support to craft new data breach legislation. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 1, 2011 - Cyberwar is war and the United States will treat it as such, reported The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday. "If you shut down our power grid, maybe we will put a missile down one of your smokestacks," said an unnamed military official. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, May 27, 2011 - House Subcommittee members received answers long on ideas but short on specifics when they probed Obama administration officials during a hearing Wednesday on the President's cybersecurity review. The House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet explored the ramifications of the Obama administration’s Cyberspace Policy Review in an oversight hearing that featured two witness panels representing federal and private interests. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON May 17, 2011- As part of National Small Business Week, the Federal Communications Commission assembled leading experts for a cybersecurity roundtable discussion on Monday and unveiled a set of new partnerships aimed at educating the public. “A recent Symantec study found that American small businesses lose billions annually to cyber-attacks, and 74 percent of small and medium businesses reported being affected by cyber-attacks in the past 12 months,” said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. “The average cost of each cyber-attack to small and medium sized businesses is nearly $200,000.” Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, May 9, 2011 - Reps. Joe Barton (R-TX) and Ed Markey (D-MD) released a discussion draft of to-be-introduced legislation that would update the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act to reflect changes in current technology. The Do Not Track Kids Act of 2011 would make several changes to the existing law, which dates back to 1998. Since then, says Rep. Barton, the Internet landscape has changed dramatically. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON May 5, 2011- At the Washington Caucus meeting of the Computer and Communications Industry Association Wednesday, Congressional leaders presented their views on preserving the Open Internet, expanding patent reform, ensuring consumer privacy online and the need for spectrum reform. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, Monday, April 18, 2011 – The University of Washington’s Computer Science and Engineering Cyber Defense Team won first place in the 5th annual National Collegiate Cyber Defense Challenge (NCCDC), with Texas A&M following in second place and the University of Louisville in third. The three-day challenge was held April 16-18th at the Hilton San Antonio Hotel. The competition was created in 2005 to spur regular cyber security exercises amongst post-secondary level students. The contestants are made up of winning teams from each regional challenge, with nine teams competing in this year’s challenge. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, April 14, 2011 - In a town where there are as many opinions as there are issues, TechFreedom, a new think tank, aims to provide a non-partisan approach to privacy issues from a free market, libertarian stance. The core focus of TechFreedom approaches privacy issues from two vantage points. One is to seek better protection from law enforcement intrusion, as seen in its efforts to reform the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. Second is in facilitating the least invasive government regulation of how the private sector uses data. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 31, 2011 - Reps. Edward Markey (D-MA) and Joe Barton (R-TX), Co-Chairmen of the House Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus sent letters Tuesday to Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T asking the wireless companies to disclose how the firms collect and stored user location data. The letters to all four major wireless carriers were sent response to a recent story in the New York Times, which reported that the German mobile provider Deutsche Telekom tracked the locations of German politicians. Keep Reading
PROVO, March 28, 2011 - Facebook founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) visited Provo, Utah, Friday to answer questions posted to the Brigham Young University Facebook page. Keep Reading